• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.149-182
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• 2001

Due to the sustained increase in lifts expectancy, the number and proportion of the aged population has substantially increased, the proportion of the total population aged 65 and over was 7.1% in 2000 and 14.3% in 2022. But All public pension schemes in Korea, including the National Pension scheme, civil servants pension scheme, private school teachers pension scheme and the military pension scheme, are facing valving degree of financial problems at present because of their weak and unstable financial bases. with the result that some of them have recorded deficits for some time and the others are expected to run deficits in the near future. This crisis in financial sustainability in public pension schemes is attributable to the structural weakness of the schemes which can be characterized as high benefits, low contribution. Therefore, this article focuses on alternative of public pension schemes reform in Korea. The results is as follows. First, a basic pension is proposed to be newly established and the earnings related portion of National Pension Scheme will be as national pension. Secondly, the Basic Pension is a universal basic pension covering all nationals over 18 years and older, thereby achieving \"one pension for everybody\" Thirdly, National Pension will be operated as an earnings related pension covering only those participants with assessed income. Fourth1y, the current participants of public occupational pensions will also join the Basic Pension as well as the public occupational pensions whose scope of works will be reduced. And finally, The conversion of Retirement Allocation Scheme into a corporate pension should be left to the discretion of the company concerned.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.46
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• pp.7-36
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• 2001

The current benefit expenditure of National Pension Scheme is comparatively small, as it stands in the early stage in reference to the historical development. On the other hand, the current contribution rate of National Pension is set up beyond which is sufficient to cover the current benefit expenditure. Therefore, National Pension makes big surplus every year such that the size of accumulated fund increases very fast. Nevertheless, the apprehension of financial instability of National Pension prevails these days. If so, is it really well-grounded? In terms of the method of financing. public pension schemes of most of all nations in the world are based on pay-as you go or partial funding. Under these financing methods, financial soundness fundamentally depends on the power that the government is able to impose the burden which is equivalent to benefit expenditure and the attitude of the public which represents whether they will admit it or not. Under this perspective, the judgement of financial soundness of public pension can not be made arithmetically and technically only on the basis of the balance between receipts and expenditure but should be accomplished considering the very complex and diverse aspects. In these context, this paper defines what the financial soundness of public pension means specifically and presents the objective indices which help judge it, that is, implicit debt, cost rate, summarized cost rate, pension expenditure as percentage of GDP, and fund rate. Then, applying the indices, this paper analyzes the long-term financial situation of National Pension empirically and evaluates its financial soundness in exploratory perspective.

• The Korean Journal of Applied Statistics
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.827-845
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• 2015

This study evaluates and suggests a new reform plan that overcomes the limitations of the Government Employees Pension Scheme (GEPS) reforms in 2015. Research results indicate that the reforms were insufficient in terms of financial sustainability, functional transparency, and equity. Debates on the GEPS reforms will continue until an equitable solution is found. The priority of the next reform plans should lie in the unification of public pension schemes. In contrast to previous reform proposals, this study suggests a reforms plan, which should result in not the parametric change but the structural change in GEPS. The distinctive point of the new reform plan lies in translating a single-tire into a multi-tire pension system. Accordingly, the new GEPS should consist of a 'National Pension Scheme (NPS)', occupational pension (additional pension), and retirement allowance. Newly appointed government employee officials should be enrolled in the NPS. This study stresses that inequality between the public pension systems will be alleviated and a pension system of social solidarity will be established when the NPS develops in to a basic old age income security system for all citizens including civil servants.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.203-226
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• 2010

Using the Korean Welfare Panel Study, this study examines the labor-market activities of uninsured persons and discusses policy implications for reforming the National Pension Scheme in Korea. First, despite the short observation period, the data show that pension status is not a static state and can be better understood in terms of dynamic processes. Second, in addition to frequent changes in income-earning activities, complex criteria for pension coverage cause substantial transitions in pension status. Third, a portion of uninsured persons involve in income-earning activities but they tend to face poor working conditions as well as unstable employment. Overall, this study suggests that building solid foundations for developing a financially sustainable and reliable social protection system is more important than rapid increase in pension coverage.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.37
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• pp.89-118
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• 1999

The goal of this paper is to define the distinguishing characteristics of Korea's National Pension Scheme compared to the National Pension types of other countries and sees if those characteristics are significant enough in order to warrant calling these the "Korean Model". Also, another point to consider is, if this "Korean Model" does indeed exist, whether it is a 'sustainable' model or not. The National Pension Scheme, which was implemented in 1988, is similar to the public pension system formerly used in Japan. The National Pension Scheme broke away from this 'Japanese Model' in 1995 with implementation of the Farmers and Fishermen Pension, and the unique "Korean Model National Pension" was completed in 1998 with revision of the National Pension Law. The characteristics of the Korean National Pension can be defined as being balanced equally on ability and equality, possessing strong intergenerational income redistribution, having a nationally integrated structure, an incomplete funded method financial neutralism of the government and also as being a Monroe-oriented pension system. There are several limits to the sustainable development of this Korean Model National Pension, though. Even though the precondition of "the income determination problem of self-employed persons", which has strong intra-generational income redistribution. in actuality there are still many policy issues to be confronted such as the structure which 'transfers the burden to the future generation', the 'inter-generational inequity' of the incomplete funded system, persons excluded from coverage under the national integrated structure, 'compulsory loaning of the public sector by the National Pension Fund' under the government's principle of finance neutralism, the separate existence of the 'Monroe-oriented National Pension' from other pensions, etc.,. Therefore, it need to reform of NPS once again to sustainable development of KMNP.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.50
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• pp.235-263
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• 2002

The present study is designed to explore restructuring direction of the old-age income maintenance system and development direction of the Seniority Pension Scheme(SPS) in Korea. While the SPS is trifling scheme with tiny benefit amount and small budget, the SPS has important role that function as only public income maintenance scheme for both the low income class and the excluded from public pension and public assistance at present stage because of immature National Pension. This study starts with the research question why serious mis-matching problem between needs and resources in old-age income maintenance system occur. Thus this study explores fundamental change direction of the old-age income maintenance system which is coincide with further situation change(demography, labour market, family structure). Also this study explores desirable SPS's development direction as taking into account relation with other public old-age income maintenance system. This paper suggests basic direction of old-age income maintenance system as follows: principle of universal and individual security; principle of sustainability; principle of equity. Under general principle, this paper also proposes largely two development scenario of the SPS. The one is to maintain present transitional and provisional scheme with trying scheme's substantiality. The other is to change into permanent old-age income maintenance scheme for the excluded public pension and public assistance. At this point it is the public pension's role that the SPS's development direction is determined. If the public pension keep one pension per one earner as present system, non-contribution pension as present SPS should maintain continuously. However, if the public pension reorganize into basic pension of one pension per one person and earning-related pension, the SPS should be managed temporarily until mature of public pension. Therefore whether the public pension play basic security role for all elderly or not will determine the SPS development direction.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.48
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• pp.7-41
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• 2002

This paper analyses the proposals contained in the British Government Green Paper, A New Contract for Welfare: Partnership in Pensions for low paid workers and the potential of the new rules to guarantee a decent income in old age. The UK pension system is a partnership between the State(providing the basic state pension and the SERPS), employers(providing occupational pension scheme) and private pension providers(providing personal pensions). Although the system needs to change, this partnership remains the right foundation. However, the pension Green Paper proposes substantial changes to second tier pension provision in the UK. In particular, the Government plans to replace the SERPS with a new State Second Pension. According to the Green Paper, this will result in "dramatically better pension provision for those earning less than ${\pounds}9,000$ a year" and through increased payments to private pension schemes, will also provide "extra help to those on middle incomes(${\pounds}9,000-{\pounds}18,500$ a year). Therefore, it discusses the general principles inherent in the design of the British pension system and analyses the balance of these principles is represented in the Green Paper. The paper then examines how the Government's proposals protect individuals from a means-tested old age. This paper finds that the Green paper's proposals add up to reinventing a new two-stage basic pension. However, two key features of a such a basic pension package are missing- an 'adequate' level of payment and comprehensive entitlement. Because of these missing principles we argue that the Green Paper's proposals incorporate for the low paid. The income from the basic pension and the secondary pension which is so near the means-tested minimum that little is gained in retirement from a lifetime of work and contribution. Indeed, the shift away from collective provision and the emphasis on individual responsibility will reinforce this inequality, so that many poor will continue to experience poverty in later life.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.53
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• pp.285-310
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• 2003

As National Pension Scheme for all nation complete in 1999 through expanding application in cities, the public pension including Public Occupational Pension became main axis of old-age income maintenance. After 4years since then, now, it is only half of total National Pension insured persons who have been qualified to receive pension through participate and contribution. The other half of National Pension insured is left the excluded from public pension. This paper is intended to identify scale and characteristics of the excluded from public pension and to analysis its cause, and to explore policy measures for solving the excluded's problem. for current recipients over 60 years old generation, the its excluded's scale is no less than 86% of the old over 60 years. The probability of getting in the excluded is high in case of old elderly and female for current elderly generation. For future recipients 18-59 years working generation, the its excluded's scale is no less than 61% of the 18-59 years total population. The probability of getting in the excluded is high in case of 18-29 years and female for current working generation. As logistic regression analysis determinant factor of paying or not pension contribution for future recipients, it appear that probability of getting in the excluded for current working generation is high in case of younger old, lower education attainment, irregular employee, working at agriculture forestry fishery sector, construction sector, wholesale retail trade restaurants hotels sector, financial institution and insurance real estate renting and leasing sector in comparison with manufacturing sector, occpaying at elementary occupation, professionals technicians and associate professionals, sale and service workers, plant machine operators and assemblers, legislators senior officials and managers in comparison with clerks. The Policy measures for the current recipient old generation have need to reinforce supplemental role of Senior's pension(non-contribution pension) until maturing of public pension, because of no having chance of public pension participants for them. And the Policy measures for the future recipient working generation have need to restructure social security fundamentally corresponding with social-economic change as labour market and family structure etc. The pension system has need to change from one earner one pension to one citizen one pension with citizenship rights. At this point, public pension have need to manage with combining insurance's contribution principle and citizenship principle financing by taxes. Then public pension will become substantially universal social network for old-age income maintenance and we can find real solution for the excluded from.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• no.39
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• pp.189-219
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• 2008

The purpose of this article is to examine the dynamics of pension insurance policy-making and policy outputs under the developmental state of Korea, by analysing the first attempt to establish the national pension scheme in the early 1970s. To the aim, this article formulated the comprehensive analytical framework from the viewpoint of process-oriented perspective, linking policy-making dynamics with the policy context as an external constraint and policy output as a result of policy-making. Policy context was explored in terms of three variables of politics, civil society and economy, whilst policy-making and policy network dynamics were examined by employing the following variables: i) initiators, motivation and triggering devices, ii) number of participants and key players, iii) participants' interests, iv) major conflicting parties and key differences of allegation, and v) interactions between participants. Policy outputs were analysed by looking into the mainly reflected interests and the change of intended policies.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.31
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• pp.247-274
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• 1997