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Employment insecurity and employees' health in Denmark

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  • Elena Cottini
  • Paolo Ghinetti

Abstract

We use register data for Denmark (IDA) merged with the Danish Work Environment Cohort Survey (1995, 2000, and 2005) to estimate the effect of perceived employment insecurity on perceived health for a sample of Danish employees. We consider two health measures from the SF‐36 Health Survey Instrument: a vitality scale for general well‐being and a mental health scale. We first analyse a summary measure of employment insecurity. Instrumental variables‐fixed effects estimates that use firm workforce changes as a source of exogenous variation show that 1 additional dimension of insecurity causes a shift from the median to the 25th percentile in the mental health scale and to the 30th in that of energy/vitality. It also increases by about 6 percentage points the probability to develop severe mental health problems. Looking at single insecurity dimensions by naïve fixed effects, uncertainty associated with the current job is important for mental health. Employability has a sizeable relationship with health and is the only insecurity dimension that matters for the energy and vitality scale. Danish employees who fear involuntary firm internal mobility experience worse mental health.

Suggested Citation

  • Elena Cottini & Paolo Ghinetti, 2018. "Employment insecurity and employees' health in Denmark," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(2), pages 426-439, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:hlthec:v:27:y:2018:i:2:p:426-439
    DOI: 10.1002/hec.3580
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    Cited by:

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    5. Alexander Ahammer & Dominik Grübl & Rudolf Winter-Ebmer, 2020. "The health externalities of downsizing," CDL Aging, Health, Labor working papers 2020-05, The Christian Doppler (CD) Laboratory Aging, Health, and the Labor Market, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    6. Paul Fiedler, 2021. "Worrying about Work? Disentangling the Relationship between Economic Insecurity and Mental Health," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1145, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    7. Bertoni, Marco & Brunello, Giorgio & Da Re, Filippo, 2023. "Pension reforms, longer working horizons and depression. Does the risk of automation matter?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    8. Steven F. Koch & Evelyn Thsehla, 2022. "The impact of diabetes on labour market outcomes," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(3), pages 424-456, May.
    9. Sylvie Blasco, 2022. "Replaced or depressed? The effect of automation risk on workers' mental health," French Stata Users' Group Meetings 2022 09, Stata Users Group.
    10. Ben Halima, Mohamed Ali & Greenan, Nathalie & Lanfranchi, Joseph, 2023. "Getting sick for profit? The impact of cumulative ICT and management changes on long term sickness absence," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 212(C), pages 659-688.
    11. Miele, Kai R., 2024. "Mental Health and Labor Market Effects of Anticipating Job Loss," CINCH Working Paper Series (since 2020) 82169, Duisburg-Essen University Library, DuEPublico.
    12. Anthony Lepinteur, 2021. "The asymmetric experience of gains and losses in job security on health," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(9), pages 2217-2229, September.
    13. Dain Jung & Do Won Kwak & Kam Ki Tang & Myra Yazbeck, 2021. "How Do Job Conditions Amplify the Impacts of Mental Health Shocks?," Discussion Papers Series 647, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    14. Christine Le Clainche & Pascale Lengagne, 2019. "The Effects of Mass Layoffs on Mental Health," Working Papers DT78, IRDES institut for research and information in health economics, revised May 2019.
    15. Gerrie‐Cor Herber & Maarten Schipper & Marc Koopmanschap & Karin Proper & Fons van der Lucht & Hendriek Boshuizen & Johan Polder & Ellen Uiters, 2020. "Health expenditure of employees versus self‐employed individuals; a 5 year study," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(12), pages 1606-1619, December.
    16. Matthew D. Baird & Jonathan Cantor & Wendy M. Troxel & Tamara Dubowitz, 2022. "Job loss and psychological distress during the COVID‐19 pandemic: Longitudinal Analysis from residents in nine predominantly African American low‐income neighborhoods," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(9), pages 1844-1861, September.
    17. Chadi, Cornelia, 2023. "Too stressed to sleep? Downsizing, job insecurity and sleep behavior," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    18. Gonçalves, Judite & Martins, Pedro S., 2018. "The effect of self-employment on health: Instrumental variables analysis of longitudinal social security data," GLO Discussion Paper Series 245, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    19. Blasco, Sylvie & Rochut, Julie & Rouland, Benedicte, 2022. "Displaced or Depressed? The Effect of Working in Automatable Jobs on Mental Health," IZA Discussion Papers 15434, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    20. Fabian O Ugwu & Ike E Onyishi & Lawrence E Ugwu & Jens Mazei & Joy Ugwu & Josephine M Uwouku & Kwasedoo M Ngbea, 2023. "Supervisor and customer incivility as moderators of the relationship between job insecurity and work engagement: Evidence from a new context," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 44(2), pages 504-525, May.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • J81 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Standards - - - Working Conditions
    • J65 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings

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