OECD, Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Social Policy in the OECD: what lessons for Chile? National Social Security Meeting, Santiago de Chile 12 October Willem Adema OECD, Social Policy Division

Outline of this intervention.  An overview of outcomes, in a changing demographic context.  Social policy in a life-cycle perspective with a focus on children and the working age population  Policy options

Chilean social policy holds important lessons and faces many challenges... Source:OECD Employment database; OECD Education database; OECD database on household income distribution and poverty; OECD Health database; OECD Pensions at a Glance 2011; OECD National Accounts questionnaire

Progress is being made. Child outcomes are improving: child poverty and infant mortality have fallen in recent history... Source: OECD database on household income distribution and poverty; OECD Health database.

...while PISA literacy scores went up and NEET- rates fell in recent (pre-crisis) history, but much more needs to be done... Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris; OECD 2009 PISA Assessment

...as demographic trends, including falling birth rates and increasing life expectancy... Source: OECD (2011), Society at a Glance, OECD, Paris. (

...lead to a falling “old age support rate” which further challenges policy to become more effective in supporting those of working age. Source: OECD (2011), Pensions at a Glance, OECD, Paris. ( Number of people of working age (20-64) per person of pension age (65+)

 Social policy in a life-cycle perspective with a focus on children and the working age population

In Chile, social spending and tax revenue are both low in OECD comparison Source: OECD, Social Expenditure database (,

...with limited redistribution of resources and comparatively small effects on poverty. Source: OECD database on household income distribution and poverty

Social spending is more focused on the elderly than on children and those of working age... Source: OECD, Social Expenditure database ( ) and OECD Population Statistics.

But public investment in children across the early life cycle is limited, especially during the early years... Average social expenditure per child, by intervention, as a proportion of median working-age household income, 2007 Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris. (

Public investment in formal childcare can lead to high participation rates in childcare … Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris. (

...and facilitates maternal employment and reducing child poverty. Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris. (

But does maternal employment clash with child well-being and development? OECD Doing Better for Families found: Maternal employment within 6 months after childbirth can have a negative effect on behavioural outcomes, but effects are small and not universally observed Disadvantaged children are most likely to gain from participation in good quality childcare Both formal childcare participation and parenting activities are often more significant than maternal employment in determining cognitive and behavioural outcomes of children.

Educational attainment has risen in the last 20 years, especially among women... Source: OECD Education database ( Proportion of population with at least upper secondary education, 2009

...but women are still less likely to be employed than men... Source: OECD Employment database ( Employment-to-population ratio, 2009

...as dual-earner couples are least likely to be poor, while many one-earner families are at risk... Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris. (

...and women’s employment also improves families’ resilience to economic shocks. Source: OECD calculations based on national labour force data and European Labour Force Surveys Total hours worked by men and women: Changes since onset of crisis

Men contributing to housework helps women in employment: countries with higher female employment have smaller “unpaid work gaps” Source: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris. (

 Policy options

Policy options in a fiscally constrained world: “social spending has to be smart”  Invest in self-sufficiency and skills throughout life  Improve redistribution of the Chilean tax/benefit system (eg through covering more poor people) and target support to limit adverse distributional consequences of fiscal consolidation  Gear policy reform towards structural change - population ageing

Invest in parents and children so they can develop themselves and reconcile work and care commitments...  Start to invest early in families with children and sustain it throughout childhood and over time.  Ensure policy coherence and use all tools: e.g. leave, childcare, allowances, family services, in- work benefits (eg. wage subsidies for hiring women) flexible workplace options, without “gaps”.  Stimulate both parents to “make use” of these supports

Improve the functioning of the labour market and ensure that work pays...  Ensure minimum employment conditions and reinforce the solidarity component of the UI scheme.  Invest more in the capacity of employment and training services, support life-long learning.  Ensure operational policy efficiency, e.g. linking of databases in different agencies; consider merging municipal employment offices with national training agency.

More information: OECD (2011), Doing Better for Families, OECD, Paris OECD Labour Markets and Social Policy Reviews: Chile: Maintaining Momentum: OECD Perspectives on Policy Challenges in Chile