Pension reforms in Poland and Russia: mid-term experiences from the participants’ perspective
Pension reforms in Poland and Russia: mid-term experiences from the participants’ perspective

Summary/Abstract: Poland and Russia, as the states that were the first to introduce social insurance programmes, have come a long way from a centrally planned budget for social security to an insurance-type model in the social sphere. The authors focused on pension systems, which are the most important components of social insurance systems. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview, comparison and evaluation of the pension reforms conducted in Poland and Russia taking into account a participant perspective. To achieve the purpose of this paper, the monographic method, a comparative analysis as well as document research were used. The varied experiences of Poland and Russia after nearly 20 years provide midterm lessons that could be useful to other countries. The study results suggest, inter alia, that despite the need for long-term stability, persistent volatility can be observed in the pension systems employed in Poland and Russia, reflected mostly in changes in the legal regulations and the principles of calculation and obtaining pension benefits; this has the deleterious effect of limiting participants’ confidence in the system.

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