Changing tracks : Studies on life after early retirement in the Netherlands

Abstract

The main objective of this PhD thesis is to gain more insight into the consequences of retirement for older workers and their spouses in the Netherlands. The central question is how employees and their spouses experience retirement in terms of it being a voluntary or involuntary transition, why adjustment to retirement is much more difficult and has more negative implications (in terms of health and well-being) in some cases than in others, and which factors are at play. To answer these questions, multi-actor panel data were collected about just under 800 older workers who left paid employment through early retirement schemes or because they had reached mandatory retirement age. Spouses were interviewed as well. The results indicate that retirement is a voluntary transition for the majority of older workers, that most older workers and their spouses adjust to retirement relatively quickly and easily, and that the majority of older couples is satisfied with retirement. On average, health did not deteriorate or even improved on some of the health measures during the period in which the older worker made the transition into retirement. This study suggests that adjustment to and satisfaction with retirement represent different dimensions of the retirement process. Adjustment refers to the process of getting used to retirement as a new stage in life and involves the social detachment from work. Workers who express anxiety about the consequences of retirement for their social contacts and social status have greater problems adjusting. Satisfaction is an expression of the evaluation of life in retirement. Resources -such as money and health, and the quality of the marital relationship- largely determine whether retirement is enjoyed or not. Poor health and financial conditions prevent retirees from enjoying retirement. Poor quality of the marital relationship negatively influences the partner's satisfaction with retirement. This study suggests that retirement does not categorically harm or benefit health. Health consequences vary across individuals and according to the health measures adopted. The possibilities for healthy retirement are very much related to the ability to manage the last years of their careers. Older workers who have to retire involuntarily and people who have little faith in their ability to cope with changes in life constitute a clear risk group in terms of health.