Inhaltsangabe:Abstract: Based on national legislation and past business practices in Germany, this master thesis / management report illustrates a specific German issue of occupational pension schemes by comparing the example of the Cologne-based German subsidiary of INFICON, the company with which I am employed, against INFICON s other subsidiaries in Liechtenstein and in the US. In the past, it was customary for both national and international companies to provide different kinds of occupational pension schemes for employees as an additional incentive. Unlike US and Swiss companies, German corporations retained the money collected from occupational pension schemes in their companies in order to benefit from these low-cost internal funds instead of investing them in external funds. Rating aspects, the increasing internationalisation of the capital markets and Basel II are forcing INFICON GmbH to reduce its balance sheet by outsourcing pension reserves. Anglo-Saxon dominated rating agencies, in particular, are still extremely critical about pension reserves and treat them as "real" debt capital. In addition, the EU Regulation 1606/2002 stipulates that as of 2005 all capital market-orientated corporations with registered offices in EU Member States will have to draw up their group statements in accordance with International Accounting Standards. Furthermore, these long-term contracts (occupational pension schemes based on book reserves, Direktzusage) are increasingly imposing a burden on German companies as human life expectancy has constantly been rising, and business growth rates have been decreasing. Moreover, companies were forced to change their policy because of the pressure resulting from the globalisation of fiscal laws for multinational corporations. Approach: It is the objective of this master thesis / management report to identify INFICON s business issues with regard to its pension book reserves in view of the common German business practices of the past and their changes in light of the internationalisation of the capital markets and of current legal requirements in Germany and the EU and to draw up appropriate recommendations. By explaining INFICON s diverse approaches in its subsidiaries in the USA, Liechtenstein and Germany, the unequal treatment of national occupational pension schemes in Germany and in other countries will be demonstrated. For that reason the national retirement systems in Switzerland (which is very similar [...]

In a previous paper we emphasised the changing national and international accounting standards used to measure net pension liability. Beginning with the implications of this analysis for the financing of German employer-sponsored pensions, in this paper we focus upon the internal management of corporate pension assets and liabilities. Two issues drive the analysis. One has to do with the emerging coalescence of interests joining corporate management and shareholders in relation to the management of pension assets and liabilities. The second issue has to do with the allocation of risk and uncertainty between social partners when negotiating the financing and final value of promised retirement income. We analyse the importance of workers' risk aversion and the widely-held goal of stable long-term real incomes for the management of pension assets. In the context of global financial markets, we suggest that the institutional framework of investment decision making common to many of Germany's largest firms is under considerable pressure; three models of investment decision making relevant to pension assets and liabilities are used to illustrate this point. Contrasts are drawn with competing systems of corporate governance, noting the incorporation of pension financing into Anglo-American corporate treasuries. Implications are drawn with respect to the changing status of German employer-sponsored supplementary pensions in relation to debate over the future of social security and social insurance.

The demographic & funding crisis that threatens European systems of pension & retirement income is the subject of this study. The book argues that state-sponsored social security will not deliver the promised retirement incomes for the baby-boom generation.

The German pension system was the first formal pension system in the world, designed by Bismarck nearly 120 years ago. It has been very successful in providing high and reliable pension levels at reasonable contribution rates. While the generosity of the German pension system is considered a great social achievement, negative incentive effects of past reforms in the 1970s and 1980s and population aging are threatening the very core of the system. This has led to fundamental pension reforms since 1992. Based on a detailed simulation model of the German pension system, this book provides a thorough assessment of the system and its reforms. It shows that the latest reforms have put the system back onto a stable path and moved it from the old monolithic towards a multi-pillar system.

Presenting the evolution of supplementary pensions over the past 25 years, this comprehensive book introduces the origin of pensions as a concept and explores the role that international organisations play within the field. It draws comparisons between different welfare states, reflecting upon current research and identifying new directions and ideas.