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01-09-2015

Labour Market Status and Well-Being in the Context of Return to Work After Vocational Rehabilitation in Germany

Authors: Nancy Reims, Ulrike Bauer

Published in: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation | Issue 3/2015

Abstract

Introduction Although there is much empirical evidence for a given relationship between health and labour market status (LMS), the following study focuses on a group for which little is known in the German context: people with disabilities in vocational rehabilitation for the purpose of re-integration into the labour market. In this specific context, the article analyses how a change in LMS affects physical, mental and general health. Methods Using a panel survey, 857 people with disabilities in vocational rehabilitation and their subjective health condition were observed between 2008 and 2010. To reduce bias due to unobserved heterogeneity, fixed-effects panel regression is applied. Results Results show that a move from non-employment to employment positively affects—particularly general—subjective health. In addition to LMS, the level of occupational limitation due to disability appears to be of particular relevance in estimating health. Interacting both the level of occupational limitation and LMS reveals that non-employed people reporting serious occupational limitation due to their disability have the worst subjective health across all aspects. However, people in employment experiencing similarly serious limitations due to their disability do not differ much from this group. These may be regarded as having taken up disability–inappropriate employment. Conclusion The results suggest that re-integration into employment particularly improves several health aspects if rehabilitants are integrated in an occupational environment where disability does not present an occupational limitation. Thus, placement in disability–appropriate employment needs to be particularly encouraged.

There have been studies on the process of vocational rehabilitation for different institutions providing programmes of vocational rehabilitation [7‐9], however, there is scarcely known about the admission to and the long term success of vocational rehabilitation.

In this article, rehabilitants always refers to rehabilitants for whom the FEA is responsible.

E.g., the Statutory Pension Insurance is mainly responsible for people who have worked longer than 15 years.

As people considered unemployed are institutionally defined as searching for a job, they are often assumed to be particularly committed to employment. Thus, distress of the unemployed is caused by the incongruent situation inherent in the status itself [21]. This might be particularly true for the present population who generally seek re-integration into the labour market.

The survey was carried out by the Institute for Applied Social Sciences GmbH (infas).

First integrated people refer to young people who usually have no vocational training and no vocational experience and pursue a first integration into the labour market. They are not focused in the present study.

Adjusting weights are used for the description of the population.

The English questions of the SF-12 Health Survey can be found in Ware et al. [33]. The German version of all items can be found in Nübling et al. [34].

Further independent variables are controlled for. If relevant for measuring health, these variables are mentioned in the results section.

Though some people (seven percent) state that they are not disabled, the characteristic disabled is a prerequisite for being eligible for vocational rehabilitation. Rehabilitants might not consider themselves disabled or might be uncomfortable in stating a disability [42].

During vocational rehabilitation many different programmes are available. The main measure is defined in accordance with a hierarchy of programmes. E.g., programmes for the purpose of (re-)training and further training are preferred over taster programmes introducing different jobs, since they reflect the main strategy of placement officers.

Although general health is a non-continuous variable, it is common practice to apply FE linear regression to refer to the marginal effects from the coefficients displayed, since marginal effects cannot be predicted using FE logit regression [43].

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Title: Labour Market Status and Well-Being in the Context of Return to Work After Vocational Rehabilitation in Germany
Authors: Nancy Reims
Ulrike Bauer
Publication date: 01-09-2015
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation / Issue 3/2015
Print ISSN: 1053-0487
Electronic ISSN: 1573-3688
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-014-9561-2

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Labour Market Status and Well-Being in the Context of Return to Work After Vocational Rehabilitation in Germany

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