Embracing the Self-Service Economy

Self-service technology (SST) continues to create tremendous impact on the business environment globally. A technology that allows consumers to take on the traditional place of service agents in the provision of services. Business organizations are taking advantage of the advancement in technology to improve service delivery and performance. The advancement in technology particularly with respect to nanotechnology, genome sequencing and artificial intelligence are among the drivers of the 4th Industrial Revolution. Consequently, information technology advancement is changing the marketing landscape of goods and services such that service industry, notably hospitality and transport have increased the prevalence of SSTs, as critical drivers of an organization’s industrial strength level. By a firm adopting technology-based strategy, this means higher clients’ satisfaction, cost minimization, and faster accurate service delivery with higher consistency among other benefits. This paper therefore, assesses the impact of SSTs and emphasizes on actual adoption and usage of self-service as proposed by technology acceptance model. The study reviews theoretical and empirical literature on the subject of SSTs and firm performance, identifies the research gaps and puts forward a suitable conceptual framework that can investigate the link between SST and firm performance. This paper uses secondary data to establish research gaps and the determinant of the success of adoption of SST by a firm. From a total of 54 articles reviewed, almost all studies on SSTs are based on the service sector focusing least on the internal customers in Kenya. A few studies related directly to the performance of the firms to the adoption of SSTs. Agricultural and manufacturing sectors particularly in the rural areas are unexploited directly. This is due to infrastructural imbalances in the urban and rural areas. The outcome of this review would enlighten; administrators of firms in Kenya and the entire East African region on the importance of ICT infrastructure, the information resources and the strategies for optimizing electronic services to attain competitive advantage. It widens the frontiers of knowledge for the academic community in production and operation management and enhances the understanding of the customer SST interactions in different industries. It creates further valuable implications on the industrial sectors, principally to the managers who use the information in drafting service related strategies and hence become a yardstick to evaluate the present service initiatives appropriately. It allows the managers to have a basis to determine whether the massive investment in adoption of technology is justifiable. Finally, this paper contributes to the existing knowledge in self-service technology and customer satisfaction and serves as source of reference to future researchers and academicians in this field.

Age Before Beauty? Productivity and Work vs. Seniority and Early Retirement

Means testing is a very different approach to Social Security reform. With means testing, retirees who have sufficient “means” – income or wealth – would receive little or no Social Security benefit; the Social Security benefit would be smaller, the higher the income (or wealth) of the retiree. The report of the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement and Tax Reform (1995), created by President Clinton and headed by Senators Kerrey and Danforth, gives serious consideration to means testing. Means testing may be viewed as an alternative to funding Social Security because each attempts to bring Social Security into long-run financial balance. A key difference is this: The higher a worker's dollar wage and payroll tax, the higher is his dollar retirement benefit with funded Social Security (and current U.S. Social Security), but the lower is his dollar retirement benefit with means-tested Social Security. THE CASE FOR MEANS TESTING SOCIAL SECURITY Advocates of means testing Social Security assert that Social Security pays benefits to affluent retirees who “don't need it” and that the Social Security system can be brought into balance by reducing benefits to the affluent. From this perspective, a retiree who has sufficient means should receive little or no Social Security benefit. One of the commissioners of the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement Reform, Peter Peterson, holds this view.

As the public debates the danger of the increasing federal deficit, social security is once again receiving public attention. Should the government de-emphasize social security and emphasize employer-provided pensions as a vehicle for providing retirement income? Before policymakers face this question, it is important to evaluate the role of these programs in shaping the level and the distribution of income among the retired. This article presents findings from a study based on the 1982 New Beneficiary Survey. The study found that, compared with employer-provided pension benefits, social security benefits not only assure a relatively higher level of income to economically disadvantaged demographic groups of recent retirees but also are significantly more effective in equalizing income distribution among a recent cohort of retirees. Policy implications are drawn from the study's findings.

The spike in marginal tax rates associated with the taxation of up to 85% of an individual’s Social Security benefit is termed the “tax torpedo.” In <b><i>How Social Security Coordination Can Add Value to a Tax-Efficient Withdrawal Strategy</i></b>, from the Fall 2021 issue of <b><i>The Journal of Retirement,</i></b><b>William Reichenstein</b> and <b>William Meyer,</b> principals at <b>Social Security Solutions</b>, <b>Inc.</b>, demonstrate how marginal tax rates can spike when a retiree collects both Social Security benefits and income drawn from tax-deferred accounts in the same year. The authors use a series of case studies to model how financial advisors can identify optimal tax-efficient strategies for clients who are able to delay the start of Social Security benefits. In the early years of retirement, income is drawn from tax-deferred accounts, and additional tax-deferred funds are converted to Roth accounts. When Social Security benefits later begin, the Roth accounts can be drawn upon tax-free as needed. This strategy can add significant value to portfolios by reducing income taxes and Medicare premiums.

Employers often shed older workers by encouraging them to “take” early retirement. An implicit contract model suggests that this behavior will be influenced by the social security early retirement program. When demand is weak and layoffs are necessary, social security benefits can act like a form of unemployment insurance, effectively subsidizing workforce reductions by lowering the cost to the firm of shedding older workers. Since social security benefits are not subject to experience rating, the result is an inefficiently high level of early retirements. This paper concludes with a discussion of policies for restoring early retirements to efficient levels.

<h3>Introduction</h3> On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the existence of a pandemic by SARS-CoV-2. On May 10, 2021, Brazil had reached the 410,000 mark, becoming the second country in number of deaths from COVID-19 and more than 15 million infected. COVID-19 generates withdrawal from work activities and consequent social security benefits. Knowing the profile of employees and benefits can contribute to a better overview of occupational approaches to COVID-19. <h3>Objective</h3> To analyze social security benefits generated by COVID-19 leave in Brazil. <h3>Methodology</h3> Descriptive analysis of data from the Observatory of Safety and Health at Work, in the period 2020, referring to social security benefits by COVID-19, with a comparative analysis of the year 2019. All social security gaps were considered. Used ICD - 10 = U07 and B34. Data analyzed: state of Brazil, occupation, economic activity, notification with ‘report of work accident - CAT’, age, gender, economic sector. <h3>Results</h3> 50 thousands were dismissed from social security benefits in 2020 according to CID U07 and B34. The state of Sao Paulo had the highest frequency with 36%. Men were 68%. The most prevalent economic sector was hospital (15%) and the occupation was nursing technicians (38%) The most frequent age group in men was 18–24 years and in women, it was 35 to 39 years. <h3>Conclusion</h3> Occupational epidemiology acting in the analysis of secondary, social security data on COVID-19 can contribute to the definition of public policies, expanding health promotion and prevention.

Social security has, as one of its primary aims, the provision of financial support, usually in the form of a benefit payment, to those deemed to be poor or facing the threat of poverty. It provides assistance to compensate for a lack of financial resources, most obviously where an individual is not able to work because of such factors as sickness, disability, unemployment or old age. Social security can also be paid as a ‘top up’ for individuals who are working but are in receipt of low wages, while some social security provision targets particular groups in society, such as disabled individuals or families with children, who are deemed to have specific needs that warrant financial assistance. In Britain, in the twentieth century, the state has played a major role in the provision of social security with, for example, the first social security provision in the event of unemployment being established in 1911. Such state provision of social security can take a number of forms depending on two features: first, the way in which the resources to finance the benefits are acquired and secondly, the criteria by which entitlement to a social security benefit is determined. Turning to the first of these, the British social security system has been dominated by the difference between contributory and non-contributory social security benefits.

In an era of increasing financial uncertainty and economic volatility, social security programs serve as a fundamental pillar in safeguarding the financial well-being of individuals and families. Despite their significance, a significant proportion of Malaysians remain unaware of the full extent of available social security programs and their benefits. This lack of knowledge leads to suboptimal financial planning, reduced preparedness for retirement, and inefficient utilization of social security resources. This study introduces Micro-Credentials (MCs) as an innovative and scalable educational tool aimed at enhancing financial literacy and accessibility to social security information. The research focuses on Malaysia’s key social security programs, including Government Pension, Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), Social Security Organisation (SOCSO), and Private Retirement Scheme (PRS). By leveraging the MC-based uFuture platform of UiTM (https://ufuture.uitm.edu.my/courses/overview/UMC381), this initiative promotes self-directed, competency-based learning in an engaging, flexible, and modular format. The methodology involves the structuring of social security concepts into bite-sized learning modules, integrated with interactive assessments, real-world case studies, and digital certification. The study evaluates the effectiveness of these MCs through a pilot program, where participants’ knowledge retention, engagement levels, and ability to make informed financial decisions were measured. Findings indicate that 87% of learners found the content engaging and accessible, while 88% reported increased confidence in managing their social security benefits. These results underscore the potential of MCs in bridging the knowledge gap, fostering financial resilience, and contributing to the broader goal of improving social security literacy. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the impact of MCs on social security education, detailing its practical implementation, effectiveness, and future scalability. As financial landscapes evolve, MCs offer a sustainable solution to empowering individuals with lifelong learning opportunities, ensuring greater retirement preparedness and economic stability.

Introducing a fertility decision and child care cost into an overlapping generations model with public education and social security, we examine the effects of these public policies on fertility. We show that an increase in income tax, which finances social security benefits and public investment in education, increases fertility. On the other hand, with a constant tax rate, a change in the allocation from social security benefits to public investment in education decreases fertility and, with a constant social security tax, the effect of education tax on fertility is neutral.

BackgroundThe results of several recent campus-based studies indicate that over half of post-secondary students in Canada are food insecure, but the vulnerability of this group has not been considered in research on predictors of food insecurity in the Canadian population. Our objectives were to (1) compare the prevalence of food insecurity among post-secondary students and non-students of similar age; (2) examine the relationship between student status and food insecurity among young adults while accounting for sociodemographic characteristics; and (3) identify the sociodemographic characteristics associated with food insecurity among post-secondary students.MethodsUsing data from the 2018 Canadian Income Survey, we identified 11,679 young adults aged 19–30 and classified them into full-time postsecondary students, part-time post-secondary students, and non-students. Food insecurity over the past 12 months was assessed with the 10-item Adult Scale from the Household Food Security Survey Module. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to estimate the odds of food insecurity by student status while accounting for sociodemographic characteristics, and to identify sociodemographic characteristics predictive of food insecurity among post-secondary students.ResultsThe prevalence of food insecurity was 15.0% among full-time postsecondary students, 16.2% among part-time students, and 19.2% among non-students. After adjusting for sociodemographic factors, full-time postsecondary students had 39% lower odds of being food insecure as compared to non-students (aOR 0.61, 95% CI 0.50–0.76). Among postsecondary students, those with children (aOR 1.93, 95%CI 1.10–3.40), those living in rented accommodation (aOR 1.60, 95%CI 1.08–2.37), and those in families reliant on social assistance (aOR 4.32, 95%CI 1.60-11.69) had higher adjusted odds of food insecurity, but having at least a Bachelor’s degree appeared protective (aOR: 0.63, 95% CI 0.41–0.95). Every $5000 increase in adjusted after-tax family income was also associated with lower adjusted odds of food insecurity (aOR 0.88, 95%CI 0.84–0.92) among post-secondary students.ConclusionsIn this large, population-representative sample, we found that young adults who did not attend post-secondary school were more vulnerable to food insecurity, particularly severe food insecurity, than full-time post-secondary students in Canada. Our results highlight the need for research to identify effective policy interventions to reduce food insecurity among young, working-age adults in general.

Net Intergenerational Transfers from an Increase in Social Security Benefits

The Social Security Windfall Elimination and Government Pension Offset Provisions for Public Employees in the Health and Retirement Study

Labor supply responses to marginal Social Security benefits: Evidence from discontinuities

The President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security proposed three plans for reforming Social Security. All of them would create individual accounts financed by diverting funds from the Social Security Trust Fund. One of the three Commission proposals (Model 1) would not restore long-term balance to Social Security. This paper focuses on the other two proposals - Models 2 and 3 - which would restore long-term balance. Models 2 and 3 contain a number of elements and are quite complicated. To understand the plans, we describe their proposed changes to Social Security benefits (which we refer to as "traditional benefits"), the individual accounts that the plans would establish, the combined effect on retirement income from the changes in traditional Social Security benefits and the individual accounts, and the impact on Social Security financing and the rest of the budget.