WORKING LIFE EXPECTANCY WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITY AT AGE 55 IN THE NETHERLANDS, GERMANY AND USA

Due to population aging, many countries are reforming their policies by abolishing early retirement routes and raising statutory retirement ages. As health deteriorates with age, many older workers may experience that health limits their workability. The necessity to continue working may depend on the flexibility and generosity of a national pension system. Flexibility refers to early retirement opportunities and their entitlement conditions, and generosity to the post-retirement income as percentage of pre-retirement income. This study compares working life expectancies at age 55 (WLE55) with and without disability across countries differing in pension system. Three countries were selected with decreasing flexibility and generosity: Netherlands, Germany, and United States, using data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (LASA), German Aging Study (DEAS) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), respectively. Participants aged 55–65 years at baseline (2002) with a paid job were selected and followed up to 2012/2014 (n=385, n=273 and n=2335, respectively). Two health states were distinguished based on difficulty climbing stairs: with and without disability. WLEs were estimated using the MSM and ELECT packages in R. In the Netherlands, total WLE55 was 5.3 years of which 0.6 with disability. In Germany, total WLE55 was 4.6 years of which 1.1 with disability. In the US, total WLE55 was 7.4 years of which 2.4 with disability. Flexibility and generosity seem to affect the number of working years of older adults both in total and with disability. Governments should be aware that disabled workers need special attention regarding their work environment.