Institutional and structural effects on late careers:

Labor markets in Europe are characterized by low employment and labor-force participation rates of older workers due to early withdrawal from work. Although a common trend towards higher employment and participation rates has been observed in the last decade, the average increase in participation among European men aged 55-64 from 52.6% in 1998 to 57.2% in 2008 and among men aged 60-64 from 34.7% to 41.0% during the same time, masks extremely heterogeneous cross-country situations These variations have their origin in a number of different determinants. On the one hand, differences in labor force participation rates are seen as a demand deficiency of firms driven by economic constraints in times of economic downturns. On the other hand, low participation rates are regarded as being determined by personal choices motivated by individual factors (health, education, family environment, etc.), social contexts (occupational activity, reward) as well as structural indicators (age structure, age-specific employment and unemployment rates) and institutional factors (pension and welfare system, employment relation systems, occupational systems, and employment sustaining policies). Ongoing research focuses on the effects of institutional, structural and firm-specific characteristics on late career using multilevel-methods.

Publications

Journal Articles

• Engelhardt, Henriette (in press): " Late Careers in Europe: Effects of Individual and Institutional Factors", European Sociological Review.

Working Papers

• Engelhardt, Henriette: " Late Careers in Europe: Effects of Individual and Institutional Factors", Discussion Paper Series, No. DP 01/2010. Chair of Population Studies, University of Bamberg.
• Schmidt, Christopher, Anita Tisch, and Henriette Engelhardt: " Der Anteil älterer Mitarbeiter in Betrieben - Eine empirische Analyse mit Linked Employer-Employee-Daten", Discussion Paper Series, No. DP 02/2010. Chair of Population Studies, University of Bamberg.