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Contribution Details

Type Journal Article
Scope Discipline-based scholarship
Title Fatal attraction? Extended unemployment benefits, labor force exits, and mortality
Organization Unit
Authors
  • Andreas Kuhn
  • Stefan Staubli
  • Jean-Philippe Wuellrich
  • Josef Zweimüller
Item Subtype Original Work
Refereed Yes
Status Published in final form
Language
  • English
Journal Title Journal of Public Economics
Publisher Elsevier
Geographical Reach international
ISSN 0047-2727
Volume 191
Page Range 104087
Date 2020
Abstract Text We estimate the causal effect of a permanent and premature exit from the labor force on mortality. To overcome the problem of negative health selection into retirement, we exploit a policy change in Austria's unemployment insurance system that allows older eligible workers to exit the labor force 3 years earlier relative to comparable non-eligible workers. Using administrative data with precise information on mortality and retirement, we find that the policy change induces eligible men (women) to retire 5.5 (8.5) months earlier. Instrumental variable estimates show that for men retiring one year earlier causes a 5.5% increase in the risk of premature death and a 2.2 months reduction in the age at death but has no significant effect for women.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2019.104087
Other Identification Number merlin-id:19210
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Keywords Economics and econometrics, finance, early retirement, mortality, health behavior, instrumental variable