De Breij, S., Mäcken, J., Qvist, J.Y. et al. (4 more authors) (2020) Educational differences in the influence of health on early work exit among older workers. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 77 (8). 106253. pp. 568-575. ISSN 1351-0711
Abstract
Objectives Previous research has shown that poor physical and mental health are important risk factors for early work exit. We examined potential differences in this association in older workers (50+) across educational levels.
Methods Coordinated analyses were carried out in longitudinal data sets from four European countries: the Netherlands (Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam), Denmark (Danish Longitudinal Study of Ageing), England (English Longitudinal Study of Ageing) and Germany (German Ageing Survey). The effect of poor self-rated health (SRH), functional limitations and depression on different types of early work exit (early retirement, economic inactivity, disability and unemployment) was examined using Cox regression analysis. We examined educational differences in these effects by testing interaction terms.
Results Poor physical and mental health were more common among the lower educated. Poor SRH, functional limitations, and depression were all associated with a higher risk of early work exit. These health effects were strongest for the disability exit routes (poor SRH: HRs 5.77 to 8.14; functional limitations: HRs 6.65 to 10.42; depression: HRs 3.30 to 5.56). In the Netherlands (functional limitations) and England (functional limitations and SRH), effects were stronger in the lower educated.
Conclusions The prevalence of health problems, that is, poor SRH, functional limitations and depression, was higher in the lower educated workers. All three health indicators increase the risk of early work exit. In some countries, health effects on early exit were stronger in the lower educated. Thus, lower educated older workers are an important target group for health policy and intervention.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 The Authors. This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. |
Keywords: | epidemiology; gender; longitudinal studies; mental health; retired |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Sociological Studies (Sheffield) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number Economic and Social Research Council ES/P000177/1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 05 May 2020 08:27 |
Last Modified: | 28 Oct 2021 11:25 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | BMJ Publishing Group |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1136/oemed-2019-106253 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:160160 |