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The effect of the statutory retirement age on spousal paid employment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2025

A.T.G.J. Rutten Open the ORCID record for A.T.G.J. Rutten [Opens in a new window] ,
M.G. Knoef  and
D.J. Van Vuuren
A.T.G.J. Rutten*
Affiliation:
SEO Economisch Onderzoek, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
M.G. Knoef
Affiliation:
School Of Economics and Management Tilburg University, Warandelaan, The Netherlands
D.J. Van Vuuren
Affiliation:
School Of Economics and Management Tilburg University, Warandelaan, The Netherlands
*
Corresponding author: Albert Rutten; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

We investigate the direct effect of the oldest spouse’s statutory retirement age on the retirement behavior of couples. We find a positive direct effect of the statutory retirement age on the labor participation and hours worked of both partners. In particular, we find that younger partners decrease their participation by up to almost 2 percentage points once the oldest spouse reaches the statutory retirement age. Male younger partners are twice as responsive than women. The responsiveness is also about twice as strong in high-income households than in low-income households.

Keywords

joint retirementsocial securityspousal effectJ26H55I38
Type
Article
Information
Journal of Pension Economics & Finance , First View , pp. 1 - 19
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press.

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