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Older individuals’ labour force participation during COVID-19

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  • Cui, Jing

Abstract

COVID-19 significantly changed the labour participation rates of older Canadians, leading to substantial flows among employment, unemployment, marginal attachment, and non-attachment. Using the Canadian Labour Force Survey, this paper examines the impact of these flows on the participation rates of older individuals and explores whether COVID-19 prompted early retirements. Unlike the Great Recession, the pandemic caused significant direct separations from employment to non-participation. Additionally, older women experienced slower participation rate recovery than men due to higher outflows and lower inflows. Notably, many individuals who initially became non-attached to the labour force in early 2020 transitioned back to employment in the following months of the same year. Generally, the pandemic did not increase older individuals’ self-reported retirement transitions and reduced their probability of staying non-attached to the labour market.

Suggested Citation

  • Cui, Jing, 2025. "Older individuals’ labour force participation during COVID-19," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 30(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joecag:v:30:y:2025:i:c:s2212828x24000458
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jeoa.2024.100545
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    COVID-19; Labour force participation; Older worker flows; Retirement;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies

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