European Policy Analysis Volume 2, Number 1, Spring 2016 | Page 80

Policy and Decision to Retire in Central and Eastern European Countries

Central or local government

Other public sector (such as education and health)

A state owned enterprise

A private firm

Self-employed

Other

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%
LT

LT

EE

EE

HU

HU

PL

PL

SK

SK

CZ

CZ

SI

SI

BG

BG

Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred Wanted to Preferred
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
retire
to continue
in paid
in paid
in paid
in paid
in paid
in paid
in paid
in paid
work
work
work
work
work
work
work
work

Figure 3. Wanted to retire and preferred to continue in paid work by the type of organization they work/worked for (%, ESS5)

This may be related to the
possibilities
of
flexible
working
conditions: the private sector (including
self-employment) allows more balancing
between family and work, whereas the
public sector does not. It is also likely that
the higher income of people working in the
public sector allows them to enjoy higher
retirement pensions and, thus, they feel
more secure in older age, which makes the
decision to retire easier. In 2010, in most
analyzed countries, the average hourly
earnings in the public sector were higher
than those in the private sector. The only
exceptions are Slovakia where the hourly
earnings in the private sector seem to be
higher and Hungary where there are lower
public wages, though the difference was
minor (less than 3%) (de Castro, Salto,
and Steiner 2013).

The limited duration of the
contract can also be involuntary (insecure
employment). While analyzing two

groups of respondents who that wanted
to retire and those who preferred to
continue in paid work based on the type
of the contract, the major differences are
noticeable in Slovakia, Slovenia, Bulgaria,
and Estonia where, among those who
preferred to work, the share of people with
limited contracts is higher: respectively
2% and 6% in Slovakia, 2% and 5% in
Slovenia, and 3% and 5% in Bulgaria and
Estonia.

Slovak and Slovenian employees in
temporary employment feel more secure
in the labor market. Eurostat data show the
positive response of the population to the
employment in the countries where social
policies were implemented: 74.6% of the
temporary employed Slovaks and 40.6%
of Slovenians aged 55–74 didn’t want a
permanent job in 2010. And oppositely,
the inability to find the permanent job can
also influence the decision of Bulgarians
and Estonians to work longer. According
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