Experience of Pension Security for the Self-Employed in OECD Countries and Possibilities of Its Application in Russia

The processes of destandardization of employment and a reduction in the scope of traditional hired labor, which are actively developing in the modern labor market, create significant problems and imbalances in pension systems, exacerbating the negative impact of demographic factors. In the time of growth in various forms of self-employment, an urgent task of pension policy is to ensure a balance between the interests of the self-employed, standard and non-standard employees and the financial capabilities of the budget; between the sustainability of the pension system and the adequacy of pensions for all participants. The article considers the problems of pension provision for the self-employed in OECD countries and Russia. Various approaches to pension provision for the self-employed, their strengths and weaknesses, associated challenges and risks for pension systems are analyzed. Particular attention is paid to the possibilities of using foreign experience in Russia. There are limited opportunities to pay contributions for the majority of self-employed people and they lack interest in voluntary pension insurance due to the low size of their future pension. Attention is also drawn to the risk of outflow of self-employed people from the registered segment in the event of the introduction of mandatory pension contributions. It is concluded that in present day Russia it is advisable to maintain the voluntary participation of the self-employed in the pension system in combination with increasing motivation to join the long-term savings program by introducing additional preferences for the self-employed, for example, an increase in the terms and share of state co-financing.