O9
SICKNESS ABSENCE AND JOB LOSS IN A UK COHORT OF OLDER WORKERS
S. D’Angelo1, G. Ntani1, E. Zaballa Lasala1, K. Walker-Bone2
1MRC-LEC, University of Southampton, UK
2Monash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
Background
Demographic changes require people to work to older ages. However, older workers are frequently off work due to pre-existing medical conditions, and experience premature job loss. Prolonged spells of sickness absence (SA) are strong predictors of disability retirement among workers aged <60.
Aims
To describe SA patterns over 7 years of follow-up and explore the association between SA days and job loss on health grounds among older workers.
Methods
The Health and Employment After Fifty (HEAF) is an English cohort of people aged 50-64 at baseline. They completed baseline and annual questionnaires, reporting on their demographics, lifestyle, employment, health, and finances. At each follow-up they detailed any job loss at least partly due to health (HRJL). SA was self-reported as “0”, “1-4”, “5-20”, “>20” days off work because of health in the preceding 12 months. Participants with >20 days SA (prolonged SA) in at least two occasions were compared with those without SA throughout. The association between SA and HRJL was explored with Cox PH models.
Results
At baseline 5,518 (68%) were in paid employment. 1077 (19.5%) reported prolonged SA in at least one follow-up, of which 287 (26.6%) in at least 2 follow-ups. 949 (17.2%) reported no SA throughout. Participants with ≥2 occasions of prolonged SA reported less favourable socio-economic status and work profiles compared with those without SA. SA on ≥2 occasions was strongly associated with HRJL (HR=6.61, 95%CI=5.39-8.12).
Conclusions
Prolonged SA could be used as an indicator of job loss on health grounds among older workers.
