Research project The European labor market is undergoing significant change, with one clear trend being the increasing diversification of working life. Continuous full-time employment is no longer as common or guaranteed. For individuals, labor market attachment can impact financial stability, independence, and health. But how are parents affected by their adult children’s connection to the labor market? That’s the central question of a new research initiative.
Recent changes in European labor markets have diversified career paths, making continuous full-time work less common. Labor market attachment (LMA) affects autonomy, finances, and health, yet its impact on the health of the parental generation remains underexplored. This project addresses that gap through an international comparison, showing how public policies can mitigate the negative effects of weak LMA in adult children. It then focuses on Spain, where high unemployment coexists with a family-based welfare model.
Spanish Ministry of Science
Innovation and Universities/Spanish Research Agency/ European Regional Development Fund
Bruno Arpino (Department of Statistical Science of the University of Padua, Italy)
Teresa Antònia Cusidó-Vallverdú (Centre for Demographic Studies, Spain)
Inés Brancós-Coll (Centre for Demographic Studies, Spain)
Recent transformations of European labor markets resulted in a diversification of working lives. Continuous full-time work is no longer a uniform career pattern. Labour market attachment (LMA) has important consequences for individual autonomy, financial situation and health. However, little is known about the effects of LMA in one generation for health in the parental generation.
This project fills this gap by first adopting an international comparative perspective, revealing the potential of public policies to reduce the otherwise negative impact of weak LMA of adult children on parental health. Secondly, once the general European context has been defined, the focus is placed on the specific case of Spain as a country with high levels of unemployment in which the family is a subsidiary element of the welfare state.
The project uses data from the large-scale European study Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). SHARE collects longitudinal information about how health, social, economic, and environmental factors affect European population over 50 throughout their lives over the period 2004-2022. Complementary, SHARE asks respondents to report on crucial aspects of their children's lives, such as their employment and family situation. This permits us to link information from two generations.
