What are the risks of automatic enrolment into occupational pension schemes for women? An analysis using a bounded rationality framework

Maureen Maloney & Alma McCarthy

The Irish government is considering legislation requiring employers to automatically enroll their employees into an occupational pension scheme in order to improve pension scheme coverage and adequacy.  In this paper, we focus on the impact for women investigating two different types of risk.  The first is the risk of non-participation because many women are in low-pay, part-time, precarious employment and will potentially be excluded from automatic enrolment.  The second risk affects both men and women who are automatically enrolled.  Using a bounded rationality model, we examine the power of defaults and evidence that pension scheme members are disengaged from the decision process. We discuss the implications for pension scheme members who are responsible for risk that they are unlikely to understand.

This seminar is one of a series of seminars in the Whitaker Ideas Forum seminar series.  Maureen will be representing the Gender and Public Policy research cluster.