Delaying Retirement in Changing Institutional and Workplace Contexts: Comparing Approaches and Outcomes in Germany, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong

Abstract

Abstract This chapter explores whether and how does the interplay of institutional context and management interventions lead older workers to delay retirement in Germany, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong. The most important factors that influence retirement plans are placed on three analytical levels: the individual, the workplace and the institutional levels. It explores the importance of these factors and their cross-national variation in three different countries, namely Germany, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong. Using three national datasets we explore the relationship between the aforementioned factors via descriptive statistics and linear regression models. Institutional regulations seem to matter for retirement plans. But within countries, plans show varying patterns across social groups (lower educated, financially disadvantaged). The comparative design does not allow analysing specific institutional features directly, but findings are indicative for the fact that individuals take institutional frameworks into account when planning retirement transitions. The findings call for regime-specific solutions and future policies, for example, age-friendly workplace conditions and opportunities for requalification and mobility in Germany, rising retirement ages and greater financial security via more generous universal pension rights in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom.