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Overview of recent cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the European Committee of Social Rights (June 2023 – December 2023) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-03-13 Eleni De Becker
This case law report discusses two cases before the European Court of Human Rights and two cases before the European Committee of Social Rights. The first case (Pająk and others v. Poland) concerns the introduction of a lower and different retirement age on the basis of sex for judges of the Polish Constitutional Court. In the case X and others v. Ireland, the ECtHR had to examine the extent to which
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Book Review: Handbook on Migration and Ageing by Sandra Torres and Alistair Hunter European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-02-21 Kristina Balenović
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Book Review: Youth Employment Insecurity and Pension Adequacy by Dirk Hofäcker and Kati Kuitto European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-02-21 Primož Rataj
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Unemployment protection for self-employed persons and platform workers in Austria European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-02-20 Thomas Pfalz
The article describes the protection against unemployment for self-employed persons and platform workers under Austrian law. The aim is to provide an overview of the respective protection systems. Interpretation issues regarding individual provisions are not discussed in detail, as they are unlikely to yield insights for a comparative study. The article concludes with a brief summary of the current
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Unemployment protection for self-employed and platform workers: A study of the Spanish case European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-02-20 María Salas Porras
The objective of this study is to offer a snapshot of the level of unemployment protection provided in Spain to self-employed workers and platform economy workers, compared to employed workers affiliated with the general regime. This allows us to reflect on the convergent and divergent aspects of the protection provided to the two groups, as well as the greater or lesser proximity to the levels of
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Unemployment protection for self-employed and platform workers in Belgium European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2024-02-12 Eleni De Becker, Charlotte Bruynseraede
This article analyses unemployment protection for platform workers and the self-employed in Belgium. In Belgium, the self-employed were traditionally not covered for unemployment, but since the 1990s, several steps have been taken to provide some protection. The scheme in place, now called the ‘bridging right’, has been regularly revised and extended, with the most recent reforms in 2022 and 2023.
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SURE: EU support to national short-term working schemes and its openness to non-standard workers European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-04-25 Panayiotis Elia, Sonja Bekker
In response to the labour market effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Union (EU) implemented ‘Temporary Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency’ (SURE). This instrument ena...
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Struggles over social rights: Restricting access to social assistance for EU citizens European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-04-17 Sandra Mantu, Paul Minderhoud
The legal category under which EU citizens exercise their right to free movement – worker, jobseeker, student or economically inactive - determines access to social rights in the host state and lea...
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The marble cake of social services in Italy and Spain: Policy capacity, social investment, and the national recovery and resilience plans European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-04-16 Andrea Lippi, Andrea Terlizzi
This article analyses the potential implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for the infrastructure of social services in Italy and Spain. Drawing from the policy capacity framework and focusing on ch...
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Free movement and access to social security in the EU: The challenge of exporting unemployment benefits European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-03-28 Christina Grabbe
The freedom of movement of EU workers and access to national welfare state systems has become a controversial topic among policymakers in recent years. To understand this, the article analyses the ...
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Designing short-time work for mass use European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-03-28 Enzo Weber, Yasemin Yilmaz
In the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, short-time work as an instrument of income replacement once again proved to be an effective means of stabilising employment. However, the very concept, based...
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How administrative reforms influence the capacity for implementing the social investment state European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-02-27 Niklas A Andersen, Karen Nielsen Breidahl
For several decades, the social investment (SI) state has been heralded as the saviour of the welfare state, while at the same time being criticised for being just another instance of neoliberal do...
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Overview of recent cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union (September-December 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-02-27 Pauline Melin, Susanne Sivonen
Five judgments from the Court of Justice on social security are reported on in this case note. First, Raad van bestuur van de Sociale verzekeringbank v X and Y (C-713/20) concerns the legislation a...
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Overview of recent cases before the European court of human rights (October 2022 – December 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-02-20 Eleni De Becker
In this reporting period (October 2022 – December 2022) two cases before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) will be presented.1 They both concern discrimination on grounds of sex. The first...
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Development of capital pension funds in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria and readiness to implement PEPP European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-01-18 Elroi Hadad, Stanislav Dimitrov, Jivka Stoilova-Nikolova
Unfavourable demographic trends are exerting more pressure on public pension systems in all European countries, and the need for alternative sources of pension provision is increasing. Personal pen...
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Should we uprate social benefits for inflation as a matter of Article 1 Protocol 1? European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2023-01-03 Kevin Hartmann-Cortés
Would a Convention State breach any property rights if it does not adjust its social security benefits for inflation? This article discusses under which circumstances Article 1 Protocol 1 (A1P1) of...
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Universal basic income as a source of inspiration for the future of social protection systems? A counter-agenda European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-12-19 Daniel Dumont
The case for a universal basic income helps to reflect on what could be done to bring social protection into the 21st century, but, it is argued, does not itself provide the most convincing solutio...
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Overview of Recent Cases Before the Court of Justice of the European Union (March –September 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-12-18 Pauline Melin, Susanne Sivonen
In this case note, nine judgments of the Court will be discussed. The first two judgments discussed concern the principle of equal treatment in relation to family benefits (S v Familienkasse and Co...
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Overview of recent cases before the European Court of Human Rights and the European Committee of Social Rights (April 2022–September 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-10-18 Eleni De Becker
In this reporting procedure (April 2022–September 2022)1, we present three cases before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and one case before the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR)...
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The policy and political consequences of the B-Mincome pilot project European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-09-19 Leire Rincón García
The idea of universal basic income is recieving increasing attention in the political, media and public agendas. This policy proposal constitutes a radical departure from the orthodox welfare ratio...
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Into the unknown: Empirical UBI trials as social Europe’s risk insurance European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-09-06 Dominic Afscharian, Viktoriia Muliavka, Marius S. Ostrowski, Lukáš Siegel
In this article, we conduct a case study of EU-level debates on universal basic income (UBI) trials, as part of which we examine core contributions in the Conference on the Future of Europe, the el...
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Parading Utopia on the road to nowhere? An introduction to the special issue on the policy impact of the European basic income experiments European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-08-22 Joe Chrisp, Jurgen De Wispelaere
Basic income experiments have emerged across Europe in recent years, but until now analysis has focused on their design and the scientific interpretation of their results, rather than the subsequen...
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The Nordic Connection: The impact of the Finnish basic income pilot on the Australian basic income debate European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-08-01 Troy Henderson, Ben Spies-Butcher
This article examines the impact of recent European basic income experiments on the re-emergence of basic income in Australian public policy and political debate. We argue that while basic income e...
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Citizens’ basic income in Scotland: On the road to somewhere European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-07-15 Sara Cantillon, Francis O’Toole
While the economic fragility exposed by Covid-19 has renewed the attention paid to social protection systems and in particular to basic income, the Scottish government had already funded four local...
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Basic Income in Ireland: The Development of Two Pilots European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-07-05 Helen Johnston
This paper provides an overview of Irish dalliances with basic income over the last 40 years in the context of social security reform. A government Green Paper on Basic Income was published in 2002...
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The Application of the Conflict Rules of the European Social Security Coordination to Telework During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-06-28 Herwig Verschueren
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the normal use of European conflict rules determining the applicable social security legislation was temporarily suspended to avoid changes in the applicable legislation as a result of telework, which was being obliged or recommended. The purpose was to avoid the consequences of such a change. However, these forms of remote work are expected to remain in existence after
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A Struggle for Framing and Interpretation: The Impact of the ‘Basic Income Experiments’ on Social Policy Reform in the Netherlands European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-06-28 Femke Roosma
In the period from 1st October 2017 to 31st December 2019, the Dutch government allowed several municipalities to carry out so-called ‘basic income experiments’, ‘trust’ experiments, or ‘experiments low in regulation’. These experiments focused on giving exemptions on obligations attached to social benefits, allowing people to keep extra earnings on top of their social assistance benefits, and providing
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To take or not to take? An overview of the factors contributing to the non-take-up of public provisions European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-06-20 Julie Janssens, Natascha Van Mechelen
This article aims to provide an overview of the main mechanisms underlying the non-take-up of public provisions by bringing together insights from existing theoretical models and the large body of empirical evidence within Europe and the U.S. We draw on studies based on the rational choice model as well as on insights from psychology and behavioural economics. Whereas most studies are confined to the
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A Truly Missed Opportunity: The Political Context and Impact of the Basic Income Experiment in Finland: A contribution to the special issue on “The Policy Impact of Basic Income Experiments in Europe” European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-06-09 Heikki Hiilamo
Finland conducted the first nationwide field experiment with partial basic income between 2017 and 2018. The experiment and its results were widely reported in international media and featured in political debates across the globe. Domestically, the experiment had an impact on social policy debates but no impact on social policy. For example, it did not feature in the Social Security 2030 project or
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Overview of recent cases before the European Court of Human Rights (October 2021 – February 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-05-20 Eleni De Becker
In this reporting period (October 2021 – February 2022), four cases before the European Court of Human Rights (hereinafter: ECtHR) will be presented.2 The first case is Šaltinytė v. Lithuania (application no. 32934/19), dealing with a housing subsidy only available to young families of low income. The Court had to review this benefit scheme in light of the prohibition of discrimination in Article 14
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Does the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights have Added Value for Social Security? European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-05-22 Frans Pennings
In this contribution the added value of the Charter in the area of social security is examined. It is concluded that Article 34 of the Charter has not created fundamental rights that can be invoked in order to improve the legal position of claimants of social security or of social assistance. This conclusion is no surprise, given the express provisions limiting the interpretation of the Charter. Instead
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Overview of recent cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union (January-march 2022) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-04-25 Pauline Melin,Susanne Sivonennn
In Bezirkshauptmannschaft Hartberg-Fürstenfeld (C-205/20) , the Court of Justice was asked to clarify whether a provision under Directive 2014/67 on the proportionality of penalties in the context of posting of workers has direct effect. In CJ v TGSS (C-389/20), the Spanish social security legislation excluding domestic workers from unemployment benefits was under scrutiny in light of the principle
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Book Review: Beyond the Algorithm: Qualitative Insights for gig Work Regulation by Deepa Das Acevedo European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-04-04 Primož Rataj
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Book Review: The Struggle for Social Sustainability. Moral Conflicts in Global Social Policy by Christopher Deeming European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-04-04 Radosław Mędrzycki
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Basic Income and the Social Investment State: Towards Mutual Reinforcement? European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-03-04 Luke Martinelli, Yannick Vanderborght
Is a social investment strategy compatible with the provision of an unconditional basic income? Prima facie, these two scenarios look like incongruent policy alternatives. While social investment – an influential policy paradigm at the level of the European Union – aims at promoting public services and maximum labour market participation, basic income is paid in cash and has sometimes been presented
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The Charter and Social Security Rights: Time to Stand and Deliver? European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-02-28 Jaan Paju
From a standpoint of fundamental rights, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) can be considered as having taken a restrictive approach to social security ever since it ruled in case C-333/13, Dano. The ECJ ruled that the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union does not apply because Regulation 883/2004 only coordinates member states’ social security systems. This has since been raised by
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Overview of recent cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union (September 2021-December 2021) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2022-02-19 Pauline Melin, Susanne Sivonen
The concept of ‘working time’ for a period of stand-by time according to a stand-by system applicable to firefighters was interpreted by the Court in MG (C-214/20). In the Y case (C-636/19), the Court interpreted the concept of ‘insured person’ for the purpose of reimbursement of healthcare costs under Directive 2011/24. In the TS case (C-538/19), the Court dealt with another cross-border healthcare
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Book Review: Leading Social Policy Analysis from the Front. Essays in Honour of Wim Van Oorschot by Tijs Laenen, Bart Meuleman, Adeline Otto, Femke Roosma and Wim Van Lancker European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-11-29 Jörgen Lundälv
Recognised and innovative researchers in various disciplines are sometimes credited with a Liber Amicorum. The concept refers to a Latin phrase meaning ‘book of friends’. Wim van Oorschot, a retired Professor of Social Policy at the Centre for Sociological Research at KU Leuven/Belgium, and one of the leading researchers in the field of social policy, recently received such a Liber Amicorum entitled
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Overview of recent cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union (March 2021-September 2021) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-11-20 Pauline Melin, Susanne Sivonen
In O.D. and Others v INPS (C-350/20), the Court dealt with the refusal of the Italian authorities to grant childbirth and maternity allowances to third-country nationals falling within the scope of the Single Permit Directive. In CG (C-709/20), the Court considered the refusal of the UK authorities to grant social assistance to an economically inactive EU citizen resident under the UK scheme adopted
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Book Review: Equality and Non-Discrimination in the EU The Foundations of the EU Legal Order by Giovanni Zaccaroni European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-11-08 Szandra Kramarics
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Book Review: Social Research and Disability. Developing Inclusive Research Spaces for Disabled Researchers by Ciaran Burke and Bronagh Byrne (eds.) European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-11-06 Jörgen Lundälv
they have regarding social policy, but also about understanding how they are organised, how different issues are linked with other topics in their portfolio, and how they combine different world views in order to disseminate ideas. Third, the whole chain of shaping discourses is thus covered, leading to new empirical insights. The first main lesson is the role played by IOs in establishing priorities
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Book review: The Dual Nature of Employee Involvement. An Economic and Human Right Issue by Sára Hungler European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-10-29 Marco Biasi
neration would no longer be determined by demand and supply on the labour market, but by the government or some other kind of centralised institution (on what criteria?). While it is certainly true that markets too often fail to produce a fair distribution of income, it should not be overlooked that the price mechanism underlying free markets fulfils an important coordinating function, attracting labour
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Book Review: International Organizations in Global Social Governance, Cham by Martens K., Niemann D. & Kaasch A. European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-10-25 Juliette Alenda-Demoutiez
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Different Methods, Different Standards? A Comparison of Two Finnish Reference Budgets European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-10-21 Lauri Mäkinen
According to Principle 14 of the European Pillar of Social Rights, everyone should have the right to adequate minimum income benefits that ensure a life in dignity. Reference budgets have been proposed to monitor this principle. Reference budgets are priced baskets of goods and services that represent a given living standard. At the moment, no common methodology for constructing reference budgets exists;
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Book review: Debating equal pay for all. Economy, practicability, ethics by Anders Örtenblad European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-10-16 Matteo Fornasier
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Sustainable pensions, democratic governance, and EU law European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-09-16 Ewan McGaughey
The quality of democracy in our economy depends on the governance of capital, but Europeans are still deprived of real voice over their retirement money: the single biggest source of capital in the 21st century. This paper outlines three major problems facing EU pensions: precarious retirement, escalating inequality, and mounting climate damage. These problems start with the places where we work, the
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Two different paths to sustainability? A comparison of a Finnish and a Swedish public pension reserve fund European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-30 Niko Väänänen
The role played by finance in allocating resources has become crucial in modern economies. Responsible Investing, i.e., the integration of non-financial criteria (such as environmental, social, and governance (ESG), negative/positive screening, and active ownership) into the investment process, has gained an important role. Does this apply to pension funds, too? This article compares two public pension
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Inadequacies of regulations on supplementary pension plans in Central and Eastern European countries European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-30 Joanna Rutecka-Góra
The supplementary occupational and individual pension systems in Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) are poorly regulated while their architecture is very complex. Law on supplementary pensions focuses on ensuring financial security of financial institutions, their liquidity and solvency, as well as on stimulating the development of additional pension protection understood as higher coverage
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Book Review: European Welfare State Constitutions after the Financial Crisis by Ulrich Becker and Anastasia Poulou European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-30 Effrosyni Bakirtzi
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Introduction to the Special Issue on Sustainable Pensions: Do Sustainable Pensions Require Sustainable Investments? European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-19 Alexia Autenne, Maria-Cristina Degoli, Kevin Hartmann-Cortés
This Special Issue addresses the concept of sustainability in pension systems from a wide range of perspectives. It examines the central questions raised about sustainable, socially responsible investments and other associated concepts by opening up a comprehensive discussion with an interdisciplinary approach. Normative trends and international cases are analysed in some detail concerning the situation
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How fiduciary duty law incentivises investors to manage sustainability risks European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-16 Liudmila Strakodonskaya
The compatibility of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risk management with the investment management requirements under the investors’ fiduciary duties (FD) figures among the key questions in today’s context of a rapid growth of sustainable investment strategies. Despite some legal developments, namely, in Europe, investors still have no clear answer to this question, which leaves them inert
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Equality without improvement? A case study of the impact of the Belgian unified status among blue-collar and white-collar workers on their occupational pensions European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-08 Sarah Knoops
The long-standing EU acquis of equal pay between male and female workers still proves to be a source of inspiration in the fight against discrimination, even in matters beyond the EU’s competence. This article deals with differences in status between blue- and white-collar workers, which have been haunting many Member States even as technological progress erodes its justification. Although this ground
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Basic income in the Swedish legislative debate: The forbidden topic European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-05 Mauro Zamboni
When it comes to welfare in general, Sweden’s legislation is certainly one of the most comprehensive in the world. Living up to the ideal of supporting its citizens and residents from the cradle to the grave, this Scandinavian country has expanded its laws exponentially in the last century to cover all aspects of individuals’ and families’ lives. Thus, it comes, then, as a particular surprise to discover
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Digital welfare fraud detection and the Dutch SyRI judgment European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-08-02 Marvin van Bekkum, Frederik Zuiderveen Borgesius
In 2020, a Dutch court passed judgment in a case about a digital welfare fraud detection system called Systeem Risico Indicatie (SyRI). The court ruled that the SyRI legislation is unlawful because it does not comply with the right to privacy under the European Convention of Human Rights. In this article we analyse the judgment and its implications. This ruling is one of first in which a court has
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Environmentally friendly and socially responsible investment in and by occupational pension funds in the USA and in the EU European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-07-15 Lauren Daniels, Yves Stevens, David Pratt
Worldwide pension funds, in their capacity as large institutional investors, are under increasing pressure to take social and environmental considerations into account in their investment decision-making process. The concepts Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) and Environmental Social Governance (ESG) are indeed ubiquitous in the current investment and pension community. This article aims to provide
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Shaping the future of retirement: Aspects of sustainability European Journal of Social Security Pub Date : 2021-07-12 Hans van Meerten, Jorik van Zanden
As of 2021, the world is facing several crises that will greatly impact on the ways in which our societies are shaped. This article provides a brief overview of the trends and opportunities that we think are crucial for the area of pensions in the years to come.