1,389 research outputs found
A New Anatomy of the Retirement Process in Japan
No full textIn Japan, retirement is a gradual process that transpires over a particularly long period of time. Using large scale micro-level datasets from the Survey of Employment of the Elderly compiled by the Japanese government, we provide some stylized facts on the development of retirement behavior since the 1980s and explore factors affecting the individual retirement decision. First, we observed a general declining trend in the proportion of retired individuals aged 55-59 (especially females) while the proportion of retired individuals aged 65-69 (especially males) increased. Second, the survival analysis on actual retirement age shows that males who worked as an expert/technician or manager before retirement or individuals receiving a larger public pension income are likely to retire earlier. Third, another survival analysis on expected retirement age shows that workers with lower job satisfaction in terms of rewards and males with a larger family size are more likely to retire earlier.retirement, labor supply of the elderly, survival analysis, Japan
New Evidence on Initial Transition from Career Job to Retirement in Japan
No full textThe interval in time between leaving a career job and exit from the labor force is especially long for Japanese employees and separation from the career job often takes place due to mandatory retirement in Japan. Using micro-level data compiled by the Japanese Government, we examine determinants of post-career work arrangements from two perspectives: work status and the route to a second job. We show that these determinants differ between male and female workers and that the customary function of career employers to place their workers in a second job has declined since the middle of the 1990s.mandatory retirement, postretirement arrangements, labor supply of the elderly, Japan
Disability Pension Program and Labor Force Participation in Japan: A Historical Perspective
No full textThis paper utilizes historical information to explore the relationship between labor force participation of middle aged and old people and the disability program in Japan. In particular, we explore the time series dimension to identify what has determined the trend in disability program participation over time and relate it with the labor supply. We find that mortality and health measures have been largely unrelated to the disability program participation rates. While major revisions to the disability program have slightly expanded the eligibility for DI programs, the program participation is still very low; thus, the effect on labor force participation is very limited in Japan, which is in contrast with some European countries that have high take up rates, inducing early retirement.
Disability Pension Program and Labor Force Participation in Japan: A Historical Perspective
No full textThis paper utilizes historical information to explore the relationship between labor force participation of middle aged and old people and the disability program in Japan. In particular, we explore the time series dimension to identify what has determined the trend in disability program participation over time and relate it with the labor supply. We find that mortality and health measures have been largely unrelated to the disability program participation rates. While major revisions to the disability program have slightly expanded the eligibility for DI programs, the program participation is still very low; thus, the effect on labor force participation is very limited in Japan, which is in contrast with some European countries that have high take up rates, inducing early retirement.
Retirement Process in Japan: New evidence from Japanese Study on Aging and Retirement (JSTAR)
No full textWhile the average retirement age is higher in Japan, the retirement process has not been in-depth explored from multiple factors including economic, health and family statuses. We examine the transition of work status and working hours for Japanese males and females using JSTAR (Japanese Study on Aging and Retirement) in 2007 and 2009. We provide some empirical patterns of retirement. First, those who are aged 60 or over and retired stay retired two years later, either male or female, while some portion of those who are aged in 50s come back to work. Second, the probability to retire in 2009 for those who were not retired in 2007 ranges 20-30%. Higher index workers in their 60s are less likely to retire but quickly retire if working hours are reduced. Third, higher index workers seem to keep working at the current working hours than lower index counterparts.
Aged-Care Support in Japan: Perspectives and Challenges
No full textThis study explores economic aspects of the market for long term care (LTC) with a special focus on Japan. First, we describe the LTC system in Japan as presently implemented, and we highlight some aspects of the program that are novel and potentially of interest to other countries seeking models for long-term care provision. Next, we discuss alternative projections of Japanese LTC utilization and costs. Finally, since Japan appears likely to experience important shortfalls in LTC in the future, we discuss whether such services might be more efficiently organized and financed under alternate forms of provision.
Social Security Earnings Test and the Labor Supply of the Elderly: New Evidence from Unique Survey Responses in Japan
No full textAlthough there exists a large volume of literature on the subject, a consensus on the labor supply effects of the social security earnings test for the elderly has yet to be reached. This study proposes an alternative approach of utilizing direct responses to a survey on the earnings test, a unique feature of our dataset compiled by the Japanese Government, to provide new evidence on the sensitivity of the labor supply decision of workers aged between 60 and 64 with respect to the earnings test. Our empirical results show that a large proportion of these workers are discouraged from working or reduce their working hours, even after correcting for observed attributes of individuals who reported either affected or unaffected. In addition, the revision of the test rules in 1995 did not alter the labor supply of the elderly.social security earnings test, labor supply of the elderly, Japan, wage distribution, DiNardo-Fortin-Lemieux decomposition
Nonprofit and for-profit providers in JapanÂfs at-home care industry: evidence on quality of service and household choice
No full textIn 2000, government deregulation along with the introduction of the long-term insurance scheme allowed for-profit providers of at-home care for the elderly to compete directly with nonprofit operators. According to the contract failure hypothesis, we would expect consumers to prefer nonprofit providers over their for-profit counterparts as a result of information asymmetry and non-distributional constraints. We take advantage of household level data to examine whether householdsÂf choice of care provider is biased toward nonprofits. We find that nonprofit providersÂf larger market share is at least partly explained by having operated in the market longer and by continuing restrictions in medical and institutional care that confer various advantages on nonprofit providers. However, we do find that user with better knowledge of providers tend to favor for-profit providers, suggesting that measures to reduce information asymmetries may help to provide a more level playing field.asymmetry of information
Do Non-Profit Operators Provide Higher Quality of Care? Evidence from Micro-Level Data for Japan's Long-term Care Industry
No full textAlong with the introduction of the long-term care insurance scheme, the Japanese government in 2000 for the first time allowed for-profit operators to compete head-on with non-profit operators in the provision of at-home care services. This study examines quality differentials between the nonprofit and the for-profit sector in Japan's elderly care industry, concentrating on home helpers and staff nurses. Taking advantage of a unique and rich micro-level survey, the study finds that although nonprofit operators provide higher quality of care, as measured by simple averages of workers' characteristics, the advantage of nonprofits disappears once their higher wage is corrected for. This finding confirms that the seemingly higher quality of care provided by nonprofit operators is due to the nonprofit wage premium, resulting from their preferential status which provides non-distributional constraints and favorable tax treatment.Japanese long-term care insurance, long-term care, nursing homes, home helpers, staff nurses, nonprofit wage premium, quality of care, treatment effect approach
Effect of Pension Reform on Pension-Benefit Expectations and Savings Decisions in Japan
No full textUsing the Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement (JSTAR), a Japanese panel survey of people age 50 or older, we find that many Japanese in their early 50s—compared to those in their late 50s and early 60s—expect their level of public pension benefits to decline. We find that recent pension reform (which raised the pensionable age) affected people by increasing the age when they expect to claim their benefits by almost the exact amount for all. Nevertheless, the effect of reform on their expectations for future benefits remained insignificant. We also find evidence that anxiety about the public pension program's future induces people to save more.
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