Fair crack of the whip? The distribution of augmented wealth in Australia from 2002 to 2018

Bibliographic Data

ID12836852
AuthorsMaximilian Longmuir (0000-0003-3602-2175, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume21
Issue4
Pages835-866
Publication date2023-07-18
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Economic Inequality (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1569-1721 • E-ISSN: 1573-8701
PublisherSpringer Science+Business Media (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1007/s10888-023-09575-9
OpenAlexW3128587594
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited37

The omission of pension wealth potentially distorts the international comparison of wealth distributions. Private pension wealth is often included in households’ wealth portfolios, while public pension claims are not. Augmented wealth, the sum of net worth and pension wealth, resolves this limitation by including the present value of social security pension wealth. This article provides a detailed analysis of augmented wealth in Australia between 2002 and 2018, capturing the establishment of the compulsory private pension scheme, Superannuation, which was introduced in 1992. Augmented wealth is slightly less equally distributed in Australia than in Germany or Switzerland but more equal than in the United States. The article also explores the relationship between Superannuation dissaving rates and the means-tested public pension scheme, Age Pension, and its distributional implications

Distribution (mathematics · Economics · Inequality · Labour economics · Market economy · National wealth · Pension · Private pension · Social security · Value (mathematics · Wealth distribution · Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis · Global Health Care Issues · Retirement, Disability, and Employment · Finance

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