Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Delayed and differential effects of the economic crisis in Sweden in the 1990s on health-related exclusion from the labour market
T2 - A health equity assessment
AU - Burström, B.
AU - Nylén, L.
AU - Barr, B.
AU - Clayton, S.
AU - Holland, P.
AU - Whitehead, M.
N1 - Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
PY - 2012/12
Y1 - 2012/12
N2 - Many OECD countries are currently experiencing economic crisis and introducing counter-measures with unknown effects. To learn from previous experience, we explored whether there were delayed or differential effects of the Swedish recession in the 1990s and the government's response to it for people with limiting longstanding illness or disability (LLSI) from different socioeconomic groups (SEGs), by policy analysis and secondary data analysis of the Swedish Survey of Living Conditions (ULF) from 1978 to 2005. The government policy response involved cutting public expenditure, privatising some services and measures to boost private sector employment. There was a decline in overall employment rates from the early 1990s, particularly among men and women with LLSI and in lower SEGs. Public sector employment declined from 53 to 40 percent among women and from 23 to 14 percent among men. Private sector employment increased modestly for women (from 31 percent to 37 percent), and stayed stable at 59-60 percent among men. Following economic recovery, employment rates continued to decline among men and women with LLSI from manual SEGs, while the employment levels increased among most healthy men and women. There was a concomitant increase in rates of LLSI, sickness absence and rates of disability pension particularly among women in lower SEGs. CONCLUSION: The policy response to the 1990s economic crisis in Sweden had differential consequences, hitting the employment of women in the public sector, especially women with both LLSI and low socioeconomic status. The observed increase in disability pension rates, particularly among women with LLSI in lower SEGs, may be a delayed effect of the policy response to the economic crisis.
AB - Many OECD countries are currently experiencing economic crisis and introducing counter-measures with unknown effects. To learn from previous experience, we explored whether there were delayed or differential effects of the Swedish recession in the 1990s and the government's response to it for people with limiting longstanding illness or disability (LLSI) from different socioeconomic groups (SEGs), by policy analysis and secondary data analysis of the Swedish Survey of Living Conditions (ULF) from 1978 to 2005. The government policy response involved cutting public expenditure, privatising some services and measures to boost private sector employment. There was a decline in overall employment rates from the early 1990s, particularly among men and women with LLSI and in lower SEGs. Public sector employment declined from 53 to 40 percent among women and from 23 to 14 percent among men. Private sector employment increased modestly for women (from 31 percent to 37 percent), and stayed stable at 59-60 percent among men. Following economic recovery, employment rates continued to decline among men and women with LLSI from manual SEGs, while the employment levels increased among most healthy men and women. There was a concomitant increase in rates of LLSI, sickness absence and rates of disability pension particularly among women in lower SEGs. CONCLUSION: The policy response to the 1990s economic crisis in Sweden had differential consequences, hitting the employment of women in the public sector, especially women with both LLSI and low socioeconomic status. The observed increase in disability pension rates, particularly among women with LLSI in lower SEGs, may be a delayed effect of the policy response to the economic crisis.
KW - Health inequalities
KW - Economic crisis
KW - Differential consequences
KW - Sweden
U2 - 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.09.022
DO - 10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.09.022
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 23063213
VL - 75
SP - 2431
EP - 2436
JO - Social Science and Medicine
JF - Social Science and Medicine
SN - 1873-5347
IS - 12
ER -