The Economic Functions of Private Pensions: An Empirical Analysis
实证分析固定收益型养老金的经济功能，发现规模大、工会化、员工性别单一、投资专项培训且工资较低的企业更倾向提供此类计划，表明养老金的经济角色超越税收优惠储蓄账户。
This paper presents an empirical analysis of the economic functions of defined benefit (DB) pensions. Firms providing pensions choose between DB and defined contribution formats. The latter is essentially a tax-preferred savings account; the former may fill other roles. Determinants of firms' choice of plan are estimated using plan sponsors' reports to the Internal Revenue Service. Firms that are larger, are unionized, employ mainly one sex, invest in specific training, and pay lower wages are more likely to provide DB coverage. These results suggest that the economic role of pensions is broader than mere provision of tax-preferred savings accounts.