Enterprise reorganization and social insurance reform: The development of early retirement in France and Germany

What explains the decline in the labor force participation rates of elderly workers at the end of their working lives? Why have governments been unable to revert towards early exit from the labour market? This paper provides an actor-centered analysis of the development of early retirement, highlighting the political negotiation among unions, employers, and governments over the distribution of the costs of these measures and the division of control over the initiation of these policies. By analyzing developments in France and Germany, the paper points to the failure of these negotiations to arrive at policy outcomes that close off the labor shedding of large firms.