The effects of taking up employment after pension age on self-rated health in Germany and the UK: Evidence based on fixed effects models

Abstract

This article analyses the effects on self-rated health of taking up paid work again after pension age. With the United Kingdom and Germany, two different institutional contexts are studied. Using fixed effects models and based on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) and the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), we estimate the individual effects of taking up work again on self-rated health, and differentiate between taking up work in a low occupational class and in a middle or high occupational class. In Germany, taking up work again after pension age tends to have positive effects on self-rated health in both class categories. In the United Kingdom, no effect at all can be seen in the case of taking up work in a low class, whereas working in a middle or higher class leads to small improvements in self-rated health. We discuss these results with regard to their limitations and their generalizability.