Die Dis cus si on Pape rs die nen einer mög lichst schnel len Ver brei tung von neue ren For schungs arbei ten des ZEW. Die Bei trä ge lie gen in allei ni ger Ver ant wor tung der Auto ren und stel len nicht not wen di ger wei se die Mei nung des ZEW dar.Dis cus si on Papers are inten ded to make results of ZEW research prompt ly avai la ble to other eco no mists in order to encou ra ge dis cus si on and sug gesti ons for revi si ons. The aut hors are sole ly respon si ble for the con tents which do not neces sa ri ly repre sent the opi ni on of the ZEW. Das Wichtigste in Kürze Non-technical summaryIn times of demographic ageing and potential skills shortages, employment of older workers becomes an increasingly important topic. During the last centuries, firms in developed countries have actively promoted early retirement. Now that birth cohorts decrease in size and the inflow of young workers into employment dwindles, firms start to focus on their existing workforces. Many firms develop strategies to preserve the potential of older workers by inducing them to stay longer and transit to retirement later.Knowing the advantages and potential risks of employing older workers, firms apply a variety of human resources measures specifically targeted at this group. Older workers more often than their younger colleagues exhibit declining physical and cognitive skills, relatively low flexibility and mobility. Typical measures consist in the age-specific equipment of the workspace, reduced working time, reduced work intensity, part-time schemes, and training. We refer to these human resources measures as specific measures for older employees (SMOE). This is the first study about the effects of SMOE on job exit or the retirement decision.In this study, we are interested in the question whether SMOE are associated with longer employment duration of older workers in the respective company. For our analysis, we estimate age-specific job exit rates for employees between 40 and 65 years. We use longitudinal employer-employee data for Germany. The data contain information on the existence of SMOE on the establishment level, which are extended by worker-specific information on job duration. 50 percent of establishments that employ older workers apply at least one SMOE.Our estimation results show that employment spells of older workers last longer in firms that apply mixed-age work teams. Job exits by workers in these firms are reduced throughout from age 52 to 64. By contrast, employment durations in firms that participate in an old-age part-time scheme are shorter as compared to other firms. All other SMOE, like specific equipment of workspaces and training, are not related to a change of employment duration for older workers. AbstractWe analyse the effects of specific measures for older employees (SMOE) on employment duration of workers aged 40 and above. Using longitudinal employer-employee data for German establishments, we account for worker and establishment heterogeneity and correct for stock-sampling. We find a positive...

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We analyse the effects of specific measures for older employees (SMOE) on employment duration of workers aged 40 and above. Using longitudinal employer-employee data for German establishments, we account for worker and establishment heterogeneity and correct for stock-sampling. We find a positive effect of mixed-aged team work on employment duration and a negative effect of a part-time scheme addressed at older workers. Employment duration does not appear to be related to other SMOE, such as training and specific equipment of workplaces.

We evaluate the effect of the Apprenticeship Bonus, an employment subsidy program, on early drop out of apprenticeship. Only school leavers who did not succeed to start apprenticeship training directly after leaving school are eligible for this program. Our analysis is based on rich survey data that has been collected specifically for this study. Using this data, we investigate the selection into the program and analyze the effect of this subsidy on apprenticeship drop out risk. Even though the subsidy provides strong incentives to prevent drop out, we do not find significant effects of the program on early drop out of subsidized apprentices. Our finding suggests that financial incentives are not efficient in increasing the probability to finish vocational in-firm training successfully.

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