Social Security Systems in France

Social Security Systems in France Social security system was founded in 1910 in France. The general scheme is presented in 1945. It was firstly intended to cover the whole population. Social Security consists of a set of institutions that serve to protect individuals from the consequences of various events or situations, usually referred to as social risks. There are four branches in the social security system in France. These are illness, old age/retirement, family and work accident/occupational disease. The compulsory â€Å"general scheme† covers the general population and mostly the employees. Another one is the agricultural scheme that includes agricultural-sector employees and non-salaried workers against all risks. Moreover, the last one is the supplementary pension schemes, ARRCO and AGIRC, which are compulsory for all private-sector employees affiliated to the general and agricultural schemes.    Social security expenditures: A historical perspective The table shows that total social security expenditures between 1980 and 2013. In 2009, public social expenditure amounted to 22.1% of GDP on average in the OECD area, but this varied considerably between countries. France had the highest rate which is %32.10 of GDP in 2009. Last 8 years, expenditures increase gradually except 2011. In 2013, the total amount of social security expenditures is %33.02 of GDP. Social Security Payment system (Pay-as-you go or fully funded or a mixture), describe. In an  unfunded  defined benefit pension, no assets are set aside and the benefits are paid for by the employer or other pension sponsor as and when they are paid. Generally many countries ensure unfunded pensions arrangements, workers have benefits paid directly out of current taxes and social security contributions. We called this method as a Pay-as-you-go method. Generally most European countries are applying this method. However, many countries like France, have a hybrid systems which means they are partially funded. France set up the Pension Reserve Fund in July, 2001. The pension Reserve Fund, originally â€Å"Fonds de Reserve pour les Retraites†, has an aim of using funds from privatisalitions of state holdings to finance the future shortfall of the state PAYG pensions system. Data for Dependency Ratio (demographic data): changes over time. Show the data on a graph and describe the trend Age dependency ratio is the rate of dependents which are people younger than 15 or older than 64 divided to the working-age population which are between 15-64 age. The birth rate in France decreased to 12.70 in 2011, and death rate increased to 8.50 in 2011. Population ages between 0-14 in France was also decreased to 18.26 in 2012. The latest value for Age dependency ratio (% of working-age population) in France was 54.58 as of 2012. Over the past 51 years, the value for this indicator has fluctuated between 61.54 in 1961 and 51.31 in 1987. Income Distribution among the Aged Population The population of France was estimated 64,612,939 in 2014 and the income per household is 2,140 â‚ ¬ nets/month. France is one of only five OECD countries where income inequality and poverty have declined over the past 20 years. Income distribution among the aged population is in below; People near retirement-age (aged 51 to 65) have seen their incomes go up more rapidly than any other group. In 2009, It decreased 28,306 to 28,700. Poverty rates for this group have fallen from 10% to 5%. They have also fallen for people aged over 65 (from 10% to 8%) Describe the Structure of Social Security Tax: Employers and Employees contributions. Need also historical data for this. European countries’s social security systems collect taxes to finance their system. In France, this is financed by social security contributions. Spesific social changes(prà ©là ¨vements sociaux and contributions sociales) are seemingly a payment (to social security system), however mostly they are seemed part of the taxation system. The table below shows the contributions of the both employer and employee. They are payable. But we should consider that; the rates has changes baceuse of type of industy, companies mass, kind of job and wages. The OECD says that, the employers social securtiy contributions are 30% of the employees salary in France. The employer social security contributions in France is one of the biggest in the world rank. This is because the calculation method is still below 50% of the significant number in the table.    Collect Data for the Structure of Social Security Benefits (a measure such as the GRR) and show the re-distributional aspect of it (if present) on a graph. Social security benefits in France are Health Care Benefits, Sickness Benefits, Accidents at work, Occupational diseases, Family benefits, Maternity and Paternity benefits, Unemployment benefits, basic retirement benefits, and Death. The gross replacement rates are the most popular indicators in pension analysis. It refers to the retirement benefit per month divided by monthly labor earnings during the years before one’s retirement. In other words, GRR is only applicable for pensionable persons. One first qualifies for a full public pension after 40 years of contribution. This has been since 2003. Before that, it was 37.5 years. In recent years, there have been increased plans to raise this to 41 years. Generally, the public pension aims for a replacement rate of 50 percent after a person’s full career. There are penalties for missing years or a given number of months, such as a reduction of 1.25-5 percent of each missing year. The GRR in France is divided in three categories: low earners; average earners; and maximum earners. The low earners get a 53 percent gross replacement rate, the average earners get 39.9 percent and maximum earners get 24.8 percent. This variation in earnings across categories is based on an individual’s pre-retirement earnings. Retirement and Age Benefits: Retirement Age did not change from 2012 to 2013 in France and it is 62. The retirement age increase 60 to 62 during the previous President Nicolas Sarkozy. The average retirement age of woman is 62.17 in 2009-2013. It reached its highest level (65) in 2012 and its lowest rate (60) in 2010. The French scheme provides for two compulsory retirement systems for employees. First of all; basic retirement system, in other words â€Å"social security retirement†. This pension is implemented after the age 62. Another important point about retirement in France is pensions may be claimed later if desired. People who continue to work after the their retirement and paid contributions for more than the attributed period for a full retirement (depending on the year of birth) can be granted a higher pension. There is also an opportunity to take an early retirement under certain restrictive conditions. Early retirement is possible at age 56 for people that born in 1952. If they born in 1952 an d entered the labour force before at age 16, it means that they have validated at least 43.5 years. Moreover, it is also possible at age 59 for people that stared working before age 16. They also made at least 43.5 years of effective contributions. Moreover, pensions will be increase in certain circumstancess; those are raising child, awarded in respect of a dependent spouse and constant attendance allowance. Secondly, suplementary pension schemes are administrated by Association for Employees Supplementary Schemes (ARRCO) that covers employeees and General Association of Retirement Institutions for Executives (AGIRC) for executive staff. ARRCO includes both managerial and non managerial employees. In private sector, the pension system has two mandatory tiers: an earnings-related public pension and occupational schemes, based on a points system. For the these types of retirement the age have to be 65-67 relying on birth date. However, there is also possible to claim early retirement pensions of age of 55 or 57. The annual values of ARCCO and AGIRC points in 2011, 2012 and 2013 are: Facts and data for Benefits for Family Relations: Spouses/domestic partners Benefits, Dependent Children’s Benefit, Widowers’ Benefits, etc. Family benefits are granted for illegitimate, legitimate, adopted and foster children on condition that they are dependants of the beneficiary. Individuals should exceed age 20 to benefit from â€Å"Family benefits†. Family benefits include â€Å"basic benefits for maintenance†, â€Å"early childhood benefit† and â€Å"benefits for special purpose†. Basic benefits for maintenance are child benefit, flatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœrate allowance, and meansà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœtested family income supplement. Child benefit is paid to families that live two or more dependent children in France. Since April 2014, child benefit rates are 32% of the monthly benefit base (â‚ ¬129.99) for two children and it increases to 41% (â‚ ¬166.55) for each additional child. Families that have at least three children aged between three and 21 years can benefit from â€Å"Family income supplement†. In France, individuals should exceed age 20 to benefit from â€Å"Family benefit† but there is an exceptional situation which is flat-rate allowance. A flatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœrate allowance is paid to balance the financial loss incurred by families with three or more children when the eldest chi ld turns 20. â€Å"Early Childhood Benefit† includes birth adoption grant, basic allowance, a supplement for free choice of working time and supplement for free choice of childcare. Birth adoption grant is the coverage of expenses of a child birth or adoption.The amount of the grant is â‚ ¬927.71 for a birth and â‚ ¬1,855.42 for an adoption. The amount of basic allowance is â‚ ¬185.54 per month and it is paid after the birth/adoption grant. â€Å"Supplement for free choice of working time† has a purpose to allow family to stop working or work less and to be more interested with their child. The last early childhood benefit is â€Å"a supplement for free choice of childcare† and it is is paid to parent using the services of a registered child-care worker or a baby sitter in the house. â€Å"Benefits for Special Purpose† includes education allowance for disable children, back to school allowance, family housing allowance, moving allowance or daily parental attendance allowance for looking after a child suffering from a severe disease or handicap. Widower’s benefit: This benefit paid to surviving widows. The surviving spouse without resources or whose resources are not sufficient benefits from a pension, based on the pension the deceased would have enjoyed or benefited. In the special schemes, the pension is paid regardless of age. In the general scheme, it is paid from 55. Before that age, widows and widowers are eligible for insurance widowhood. The widow allowance is paid for two years. Unemployment Insurance Benefits Program: This program is only applicable for the employed persons. To understand what this means, below is an explanatory list of requirements needed for one to qualify for the unemployment benefits (EU 22): One must be unemployed through no fault of his/hers He/she must be a registered jobseeker and willing to abide by a personalized back-to-work plan of action He/she must be genuinely and continuously looking for work He/she must be physically fit for work He/she must not meet the full pension schemes, and He/she must produced evidence of their insurance under unemployment insurance scheme for four of the last 36 months and 28 months for those over and under 50 years age respectively Those who qualify get a daily allowance consisting of fixed reference wage (and variable parts. The variable part ranges between 57.4 and 75 percent of the reference wage. This scheme allows a payment for a period of 4 to 24 months (for under-50s) and 36 months (for over-50s). It also depends on the job seeker’s prior insurance period and age (EU 22). Health Care Coverage for the eligible recipients and their dependents. In 2000, the World Health Organization declared that France selected the â€Å"close to best overall health care† in the world. France health care system is financed by government National Health Insurance and France spent 11.6% of GDP on health care and $4,118 per capita. Even if this spending on health care is less than nine countries in the OECD (for example, Germany, Canada , Switzerland) , only two countries surpassed France’s health care spending as a percent of GDP of 11.6 %. Although the country has the second highest level of alcohol consumption in the world, France’s life expectancies is 82.2 which means one of the longest life expectancies in the world. Health care system in France is financed by two system. One of them is called â€Å"L’assurance maladie† which is a state controlled health insurance social security system. The other one is called â€Å"L’assurance complementaire† which is a separate voluntary health insurance system. â€Å"L’assurance maladie† is one the four branches of social security system. There are three main schemes that administred by NHI system according to occupation. First one is general scheme (CNAMTS : Caisse Nationale d’Assurance Maladie des Travailleurs Salarià ©s) which funds almost 75% of health spending. It covers approximately 85% of the population working in industry and commerce. It also includes retired individuals. The General Fund is administered by theCaisse Primaire d’Assurance Maladie (CPAM). Individuals who live in France must register at their local CPAM for national health insurance coverage and people are issued with a â€Å"carte vitale† after registration. Card vitale is a second generation of smart card that indicates national insurance rights in electronic form. The carte vitale is not a means of payment, however it does enable the government to provide reimbursement immediately and it saves patients of the need for the huge a mounts of form filling required under the old carte sociale system. Second one is agriculture scheme (MTA : Mutualità © sociale agricole) which supports occupational health and prevention of occupational risks, and conducting activities to health and social. It covers 6 per cent of the population, including farmers, agricultural employees and their families. Final one is for the self employed (RSI : Rà ©gime social des independents) that covers artisans, traders, industrialists and professionals. Social Security Reforms: pending or implemented. To address the perceived payment gaps cited above, the Council of Ministers proposed the need to find a pension system balance (that is bring financial balance, and governance and fairness in the administration of the pensions scheme). This would ensure: the adaptation of the indexation rules; increased contribution period for full pension; reduced employers’ social contribution, among others (Embassy of France in London 1). In relation to the welfare schemes, President Francois Hollande is reportedly currently looking for ways for reforms in pension, unemployment payments and family benefits. So far, the government has relied on tax increases to account for the huge deficits discussed above. However, in the future the government might increase charges on workers and employers, as well as taxes on pensioners; raise the contribution period before one qualifies for a full pension, among others (The Economist, 2013). Problems and issues with the system. A number of problems and issues have been raised over Frances social security system. In relation to pension scheme reforms, for instance, many cited financing gap between private sector employees and civil servants. The latter’s payments were included as part of state expenditure, placing them at an advantage over the former group. Therefore, there have been calls to address what many have come to see as financing gap in pension schemes for those in the private sector and civil servants (Embassy of France in London 1). There have also been fears concerning the sustainability of the systems welfare schemes. The rising deficits are a cause for alarm. The deficits of these three on the country’s general social security systems are on the increase. By 2020, the deficits of the pension, family and unemployment pay are expected to reach â‚ ¬20.9 billion (about $25 billion), â‚ ¬2.6 billion and â‚ ¬4.8 billion respectively (The Economist, 2013).   REFERENCES Embassy of France in London. The French Pension Reform- key Elements, Oct. 10, 2013. Web, June 18 2014 European Union. Your Social Security Rights in France, 2013. Web, June 18 2014 OECD. Retirement-Income Systems in OECD Countries: France, OECD, 2013. Web, 20 June 2014 The Economist. Must We Work Harder? June 22, 2013. Web, June 18, 2014 Poindessault-Bernard, L., Zuterek, A. (n.d.). Social security systems around the globe.. Retrieved June 20, 2014, from http://www.pwc.be/en_BE/be/publications/2013/social-security-booklet-sept2013.pdf Lorganisation de la Sà ©curità © sociale. (2011, January 5).Le portail du service public de la Sà ©curità © sociale / Usagers /. Retrieved June 11, 2014, from http://www.securite-sociale.fr/L-organisation-de-la-Securite-sociale?type=part

Education Values Essay -- essays research papers fc

Discussions on particular educational curricular issues or programs reflect not only educational values but societal values as well. Three areas in particular that have been eliciting much discussion are bilingual education programs, services within schools for gay and lesbian students, and inclusion of multicultural curricula. Among each of these programs, questions have been raised about their relativity to education and the comprehensive research to prove that these programs are beneficial to students.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Bilingual education is a fairly new program, in which foreign-born students learn English for one period during the day while all their other classes are taught in their native tongue (Holloway). This program isn’t just restricted to students who are learning English as their second language, it is also required of English speaking students as well. It gives them an opportunity to acquire a second language easily by allowing them to interact with foreign-born students in order to learn more about their culture and their language (Holloway). School Chancellor Harold O. Levy has supported this program from the beginning. â€Å"The goal of dual-language models is to promote long-term literacy in both groups of students†¦whether for cultural, economic or educational reasons,† said Levy. Skeptics like Ron K. Unz said that dual-language programs require specialized teachers, and it is difficult to measure their effectiveness on immigrant children due to t...

Night †Devotion to God Essay

Under certain circumstances, one’s perspective towards their faith in God may change, which is demonstrated in the memoir Night. Wiesel’s initial devotion to God and his faith undergoes a radical transformation in the face of his horrendous experiences, resulting in apparently soils and cynical atheism, but his faith survives to some degree in spite of overwhelming odds, and in subsequent years move have revived enough to motivate this memoir. At the age of twelve, Wiesel began to question God and analyze the cabbala with his fellow friend Moche, and together there faith became stronger than before. Then, under circumstances, Moche was sent away, and returned as a different man. The motif of his eyes demonstrated his loss in the faith of God. He cried to the people to believe that the horrific experiences he said was true, but no one could pull themselves together to believe. Moche’s faith was gone, and that only made Wiesel’s faith stronger. Wiesel’s devotion never disappeared as he stated, â€Å"I continued to devote myself to my studies. By day, Talmud, at night, the cabbala† (18). Yet, his faith began to take a turn when the Germans took over the life of the Jews. He described his experiences as hell, describing that god was trying to say that hell wasn’t any worse than the experiences they were going through. Wiesel kept thinking of god, thanking him for every joyful moment that he came across. Wiesel’s faith became then weakened when he came across a rabbi. â€Å"Here came the Rabbi, his back bent, his face shaved, his pack on his back. His mere presence among the deportees added added a touch of unreality to the scene† (26), Wiesel faith weakened because seeing this rabbi left him in shock, making it so surreal. After the rabbi experience, Wiesel’s faith went downhill from there. When the night came along no one prayed, out of fear of the next day. Wiesel came across horrific experiences, making him question god. He saw babies and humans being burned, for no apparent reason. Angered, Wiesel came to a solution by stating â€Å"Why should i bless His name? † (42). At times, Wiesel’s faith was totally gone because he was angered towards how people were treated, and why God didn’t do anything about it. Wiesel’s relationship with God remained as he believed that God was out there, just hidden saying â€Å"I did not deny God’s existence, but I doubted His absolute justice. † (53). Then time passes and Wiesel’s relationship with God is then questioned when he is influenced by the people around him. One day he came across three victims being killed, and listening to to people saying â€Å"Where is He? † (72). Wiesel was also influenced by Akiba Drummer, as the motif in his eyes showed that he lost total faith in God. Wiesel no longer blessed God because he realized that there was no point of blessing God when he allowed so many horrid things to happen. Wiesel also stopped praying, since he had no time to do so. All this resulted to an extent of Wiesel being spiritually dead. Wiesel lost total faith and spirit in God, because of the horrid experiences he went through, which changed his perspective on certain things. After the concentration camp, Wiesel’s spirit and faith revive. Looking back at his experiences, as he writes his memoir, he realizes how harsh he was to God. Wiesel acted bitter towards God, as he lost faith, not because he chose to, it was because of the circumstances he was under. Wiesel’s faith and spirit was probably gained as he slowly began to realize that God had nothing to do with the repulsive experiences he went through. The reason he lost faith in God was because he needed someone to blame, someone to take his anger out to, and that was probably understood a while after he was rescued. Overall, Wiesel’s perspective towards faith in God changes, which is demonstrated in the memoir Night. To conclude, Wiesel’s initial devotion to God and his faith undergoes a radical transformation in the face of his horrendous experiences, resulting in apparently soils and cynical atheism, but his faith survives to some degree in spite of overwhelming odds, and in subsequent years move have revived enough to motivate this memoir. In certain situations, one’s relationship with God can take a change, for the better or worse.

Positive Effects Of Violent Video Games - 1161 Words

Violent video games have been a popular pass time for American teenagers ever since the first ones were released. The most popular of these games are Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty, Mortal Kombat, and Doom. It has become a popular belief that these games are directly linked to violent behaviors in our youth. Numerous scholars have set out to determine the validity of these assumptions through vast surveys and studies in America. All of these scholars share the belief that violent video games affect the minds of teenagers in some way, but they do not necessarily agree on whether the effects are constructive or deconstructive in the development of young minds. Russell Laczniak, author of Parental Restrictive Meditation and Children’s†¦show more content†¦He includes a meta-analysis that shows positive linkages between teenagers’ violent video gameplay and aggressive behaviors (Anderson et al. 2010 qtd in Laczniak 2017). Adel Agina, author of Towards Underst anding the Positive Effects of Playing Violent Video Games on Children’s Development, has an understanding of the effects of violent video games that is contradictory to those of Laczniak. At the beginning of her article, Agina pronounces her agreement that violent video games are negatively disruptive in the advancement of children’s thoughts and behaviors, but then goes on to express that the games do not have the same effect on teenagers (Chambers Ascion 1987: Griffith 1999). She completed studies that on the Children’s Behavioral Regulation (CBR), which refers to â€Å"the level of the children’s speech use, the differentiation and difference between private speech, social speech, and thinking aloud, and the degree of the children’s self-regulation learning and satisfaction during learning tasks when children act alone and without any human-human interaction or social intervention during learning tasks† (Agina 2012). The results of h er studies proved her beliefs that there are positive outcomes to playing violent video games. Violent arousal has a positive effect on development in young people, especially in thinking aloud and self-regulation (Agina 2012). A measure ofShow MoreRelatedViolent Video Games : Positive And Negative Effects On Children And Adolescents774 Words   |  4 Pagesgaming systems, violent video games have become well-liked by children and adolescents. The playing of violent video games has always been a controversial topic, but in recent years it has become a heated debate. Whether the playing of these games desensitize the player or not. Video games have been around since the late 1970s, however violent video games were introduced in the 1990s. In recent years the violence in games have increased along with the enhanced graphics making the games more realisticRead MoreEffects Of Video Games On Mental Health1120 Words   |  5 PagesDoes video game have an effect on mental health? 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