The development of self-employment may be interpreted as the result of structural reform policy aimed at labour market flexibility and economic prosperity. Contrastingly, it may also correspond to the outcome of a poor economic situation, with people becoming self-employed out of the need to earn a living. What then will be their situation at retirement age as they depend highly on private provisions? With a focus on solo self-employment, Uwe Fachinger and Anna Frankus use data from the German Microcensus for 1989–2009 to study the ability and willingness of people to save money for old-age provision. Their results emphasize what would be a growing poverty risk, calling for overall attention and policy response.
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