The Effect of Age Group Growth on Labor Force Participation:
The Case of Older Workers
by
Robert F. Szafran
Department of Sociology
Stephen F. Austin State University
Nacogdoches, TX 75962
phone: 936-468-2009
fax: 936-468-2162
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Abstract
What effect do increases in the share of the population age 65 and older have on
the rate at which older persons participate in the labor force? This question is
examined using state-level data for the year 2004. Controls are introduced to take
into account the overall condition of a state’s economy, the educational level of a
state’s older population, and the migration of older persons into and out of the
state. It is found that states with larger shares of their population that are old tend to
have lower labor force participation by those older persons. This inverse
relationship between share and labor force participation is consistent with the claim
against employers of age discrimination.