The impact of sustainable work on women’s employment beyond the statutory retirement age

Purpose: Gender inequality in public pensions and cultural norms stimulate earlier labor market exit among women, resulting in reduced pension benefits. To mitigate those risks, we formulate a question: how can factors of sustainable work improve women’s employment beyond the statutory retirement age under gender inequality in the public pension system? Design/methodology/approach: We use Polish labor market data. We selected a sample of women who were beyond the statutory retirement age (min. 61 years old) and stayed still active in the labor market. Using a semiparametric Cox model, we examined the risk factors of the stop working. Findings: We show that the risk of discontinuing employment beyond the statutory retirement age was lower not only among women whose earnings were higher than the average retirement benefit, but also among women who performed work consistent with their education, and whose jobs provided opportunities for professional training. Originality/value: This study identifies the factors of sustainable work quality and organization characteristics that affect the risk of work discontinuation among women beyond the statutory retirement age.