Research Group
Labor Demography
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Detailed Description
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The shrinking and the graying of the workforce are key concerns associated with population aging. These two developments are resulting in a decreasing worker-to-non-worker ratio, thus challenging the sustainability of labor markets and welfare systems across high-income countries. Increasing the length of working life is often proposed as a potential solution to the challenges arising from population aging. Accordingly, policies aimed at increasing the duration of working life have been implemented in many countries. Despite the major focus of policies and public debates on retirement ages, very little is known about the length of working life, what determinants shape it, and what key societal and individual life course factors are affected by increases or decreases in labor force participation.
The MPIDR’s interdisciplinary Research Group: Labor Demography analyzes how demographic change, the labor market, and economic and social factors interact in shaping the workforce of today and of the future. We study how demographic development affects the size and composition of the workforce. Our research is informed by theories from across the social sciences and uses demographic and statistical methods. Our datasets include cross-sectional and longitudinal surveys and administrative register data.
We use working life expectancy as a key indicator of working life trajectories, and assess its trends and determinants from a comparative perspective. Studying how specific phases of the life course contribute to the duration of working trajectories; how they interact in contributing to cumulative (dis)advantage; and how other processes and domains, such as health and well-being, contribute to these trajectories will provide novel insights into working life. Methodological innovation, particularly in the measurement of labor force participation dynamics and in the modeling of life course dynamics with longitudinal methods, is a key characteristic of the research conducted in the Labor Demography research group.
Moreover, we assess how labor force participation across the life course is interrelated with the dynamics of health, wealth, and well-being. This involves determining both the factors that contribute to and the outcomes of crucial labor market transitions, such as retirement or entry into the labor market, and determining the aspects of inequality that govern how well-off individuals are. We also assess how these processes are affected by changing social and institutional contexts, covering transformative developments such as automation and artificial intelligence. Another particular focus is on vulnerable population subgroups and intersections of risk factors, thus shedding light on major inequalities in the labor market. In addition, we complement the focus on paid employment by assessing how unpaid work is distributed across the life course, and how it affects the life course.