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The silent pension pillar implosion

This article discusses recent trends in occupational pension policy and identifies the rise of a second policy wave directed towards greater individualisation in occupational pension plans. It is clear that, at a global level, governments and regulatory offices are promoting the so-called third pillar as a valuable pension option and that freedom of choice of the individual is a key element in this process. This individualisation reflects the decreasing involvement of employers in occupational plans and the increasing attentiveness of governments towards individual retirement schemes. We ask whether the so-called first and third pillar are pushing the second pillar away and whether there is a silent pension pillar implosion. In the article, we describe and analyse recent legislative and regulatory initiatives in six European countries to locate the individualisation process. We also propose a new paradigm for pension policy makers in which the so-called pension pillars are abandoned and replaced by an integrated pension vision leading to a balanced target income in retirement. In this integrated vision, there is a legal link between all forms of pension in a given country. This link is reflected in social and fiscal law.