Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/238089 
Authors: 
Year of Publication: 
2021
Series/Report no.: 
Working Papers No. 21-7
Publisher: 
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Boston, MA
Abstract: 
This paper studies the elimination of traditional pensions and subsequent adoption of 401(k) plans by U.S. employers. Using thousands of firm-level natural experiments, it shows that unexpected losses in future compensation engendered by pension plan transitions induce premature retirement for some workers and delayed retirement for others. Observed heterogeneity in retirement behavior is indicative of differences in wealth and in preferences for leisure. Using credibly identified treatment effects as estimation targets, it fits a structural model of retirement and uses the model to evaluate the effect of a counterfactual reform that eliminates Social Security payroll taxes for older workers.
Subjects: 
labor supply
pensions
retirement savings
Social Security payroll tax
JEL: 
J26
J32
J41
M52
D15
H24
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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