Economic development and labor force participation of older persons

The effect of economic development on labor force participation rates of ol der men and women is examined using national data for 134 countries. The an alysis provides new insights into the evolution of retirement patterns with rising personal income, slowing population growth, the aging of the popula tion, and shifts in the composition of employment. The analysis indicates a negative relationship between per capita income and labor force participat ion rates. This relationship is stronger for older men than for older women and is most apparent among middle income countries. An older population is associated with lower participation rates for older men and higher widow r ates produce higher participation rates among older women. Industrial chang es such as a decline in the proportion of the labor force employed in agric ulture lower the proportion of older persons in the labor force. Finally, n ational social security policies are shown to impact the proportion of olde r persons that remains in the labor force.