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Social security distortions onto the labor market: estimates for Colombia

Author

Listed:
  • Cuesta, Jose
  • Olivera, Mauricio
Abstract
This paper identifies and quantifies three distortions caused by the existing social security and social assistance systems in Colombia. These distortions refer to the discrepancy between the cost of formal social security for the employer and the worker's valuation of the received service (social distortion): the differences in social security benefits received by salaried and self-employed formal workers (occupational distortion); and the discrepancy caused by the cost in employing a formal instead of an informal worker (informal distortion). Based on recently collected information concerning Colombian workers'willingness to pay for several packages of social security benefits, the study calculates that social distortions range from 2 to 27 percent of the workers'labor earnings; the occupational distortion amounts to 50 percent of formal salaried workers'earnings; and the informal distortions represent between 45 and 56 percent of formal workers'labor income. Results indicate that valuations of the contributive and noncontributive protection systems play a key role in explaining these distortions. In addition, the Colombian social protection system thereby places a hefty tax on the formal worker (and employer) while transferring resources to the informal worker, but these distortions are not sufficient to revert differentials in earnings among formal and informal workers.

Suggested Citation

  • Cuesta, Jose & Olivera, Mauricio, 2010. "Social security distortions onto the labor market: estimates for Colombia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5390, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:5390
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mesa-Lago, Carmelo, 2000. "Desarrollo social, reforma del Estado y de la seguridad social, al umbral del siglo XXI," Políticas Sociales 6266, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    2. World Bank, 2002. "Colombia : Social Safety Net Assessment," World Bank Publications - Reports 15361, The World Bank Group.
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    Cited by:

    1. Moller, Lars Christian, 2012. "Fiscal policy in Colombia : tapping its potential for a more equitable society," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6092, The World Bank.
    2. Hamadi Matoussi & Faten Zoghlami, 2007. "Momentum in Emerging Markets: Investigation of Overconfidence and Cognitive BIAS Factors," Working Papers 717, Economic Research Forum, revised 04 Jan 2007.
    3. Azuara, Oliver & Marinescu, Ioana, 2013. "Informality and the expansion of social protection programs: Evidence from Mexico," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(5), pages 938-950.
    4. Paulette Castel & Trung-Thanh To, 2012. "Informal employment in the formal sector: wages and social security tax evasion in Vietnam," Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(4), pages 616-631.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Health Monitoring&Evaluation; Labor Markets; Labor Policies; Labor Standards; Population Policies;
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