The impact of COVID-19 on longer careers – an initial assessment for Malta

Aaron Grech

No PP/05/2022, CBM Policy Papers from Central Bank of Malta

Abstract: Since older cohorts were more vulnerable to COVID-19, the pandemic was expected to be an age-specific shock to the labour market, undoing the lengthening of working lives of previous decades. In the case of Malta, the existence of the early exit age of 61 enhanced these fears, as older workers could withdraw more easily from the labour market and draw a more generous benefit than the COVID-19 wage supplement. Labour Force Survey data suggest that initially those aged 60 to 64 withdrew more rapidly from employment than other age groups. However, Jobsplus employment register data confirm that this development was not long-lasting and that the proportion of those resorting to an early pension did not rise. The pandemic does not appear to have had any discernible impact on labour market behaviour of older workers, and the positive economic and fiscal impacts of the gradual rise in pension age appear unaffected.

JEL-codes: E37 H55 J26 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 18 pgs
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mlt:ppaper:0522

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