Erik Hernæs

Does retirement age impact mortality

The relationship between retirement and mortality is studied with a unique administrative data set covering the full population of Norway. A series of retirement policy changes in Norway reduced the retirement age for a group of workers but not for others. Difference-in-differences estimation based on monthly birth cohorts and treatment group status show that the early retirement programme significantly reduced the retirement age; this holds true also when we account for programme substitution, for example into the disability pension. Instrumental variables estimation results show no effect on mortality of retirement age; neither do estimation results from a hazard rate model.

Occupational pensions, tenure, and taxes

The occurrence in firms of occupational pensions is investigated with a linked employer–employee dataset, supplemented with actuarial calculations of tax savings when labour compensation is in the form of pensions compared to wages. Tax gains, which can be shared between employers and employees, and expected increases in average tenure are both clearly associated with the occurrence of an occupational pension. Occupational pensions are typically found in large firms, with decentralized wage negotiations, a high degree of unionization, and the requirement of long training. The results and the approach provide a basis for analyzing also the trend towards DB pensions.

Pension reforms, liquidity constraints and labour supply responses*

Labour supply responses among older people are estimated on 1996 cross-section register data covering all Norwegians aged 55–68, with an inter-temporal structural model of retirement decisions. Simulations illustrate the impact of introducing flexible pension take-up with actuarial adjustment. With the option of perfect consumption smoothing via the credit market, the reform which comes into effect in Norway from 2011 will reduce the share of retired persons in the age bracket 60–67 (in the base year 15–16%) by around 3 percentage points. With no consumption smoothing, the reduction will be 0.75 percentage points.

Labour Mobility, Pension Portability and the Lack of Lock-In Effects

This paper revisits the question of whether defined benefit pension plans inhibit labour mobility. Using national register data for three distinct periods, we define and calculate a measure of changes in individual pension entitlements which we term potential portability gain. Estimation results indicate that the effect of portability gains on the propensity to change jobs is either weak or non-existent, and there are no signs of gains or losses in pension entitlements being reflected in wages for job changes.

Pursuit of performance excellence: a population study of Norwegian adolescent female cross-country skiers and biathletes with disordered eating

Aim To examine the prevalence of disordered eating (DE) among the total population of Norwegian female cross-country skiers and biathletes at the junior level, and to determine whether sociodemographic characteristics predict DE among athletes. Methods A cross-sectional population study of Norwegian female junior cross-country skiers and biathletes (n=262), with a response rate of 86%. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analyses explored the prevalence of DE and its relation to sports, competitive age groups, competitive status and education. DE was defined as meeting at least 1 of the following criteria from 2 subscales of the Eating Disorder Inventory-2: the Drive for Thinness score ≥15 and/or the Body Dissatisfaction score ≥14. Results 18.7% of the athletes had DE. There was no significant difference in the occurrence of DE between the sports or the competitive age groups. Athletes who had dropped out of sports had a significantly higher occurrence of DE, while athletes who attended upper secondary schools of elite sports or general studies had a significantly higher occurrence of DE based on Drive for Thinness. Conclusions The number of female cross-country skiers and biathletes with DE is higher than that found in previous similar studies using the same screening instruments. Type of education and competitive status are significant predictors of DE, indicating that DE in addition to having adverse effects on an athletes health, may also lead to early dropout of sport. This indicates that health and achievement are not always compatible within sports.