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Background: To assess the contribution of disability retirement on lost working years, we calculated the length of time spent on disability pension in various diagnostic groups by the level of education over the past 10years, during which time the incidence of disability retirement has sharply decreased in Finland. Methods: The expectancy for time on disability pension due to mental disorders, musculoskeletal diseases, cardiovascular diseases and other diseases at age groups 25-63 was calculated using the Sullivan method based on nationwide register data for 2005-2014. The effect of the rise in overall education levels was estimated using counterfactual analysis. Results: Time spent on disability pension differed widely between educational groups. People in lower educational groups spent more time on disability pension due to all diagnoses and musculoskeletal diseases in particular. Time spent on disability pension decreased in all educational groups over time. In 2014, primary educated men were expected to spend 2.67 years on disability pension, compared to 0.57 years for higher tertiary educated men. The figures for women were closely similar. Educational differences in time spent on disability pension due to somatic diseases decreased over time, whereas the opposite was true for mental disorders. The reduced amount of time spent on disability pension was explained in part by the rise in overall education levels. Conclusions: Time spent on disability pension due to somatic conditions has decreased in all educational groups. Educational differences in time spent on disability pension are increasingly attributable to mental disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The aim of this study was to examine the magnitude of company-level variation in vocational rehabilitation (VR) and to determine which individual- and company-level characteristics are associated with receiving VR due to mental disorders, musculoskeletal diseases, and other somatic diseases. Methods A 30% random sample of all Finnish private sector companies with more than 10 employees aged 25-62 years at the end of 2010 (5567 companies with 300,601 employees) was followed up for the receipt of VR over the next 6 years. Company size and industry, as well as gender, age, education, social class and sickness absence measured both at the individual- and company-level were used as explanatory variables in multilevel logit models. Results After controlling for the individual-level characteristics, 12% of the variance in VR was attributed to the company level. The proportion was largest in VR due to musculoskeletal diseases. Receiving VR was more common among women, older employees (except the oldest age group), those with low education (particularly due to musculoskeletal diseases), low social class, and previous sickness absence. Receiving VR was more common in larger companies, and in construction and in health and social work, and less common in professional, scientific and technical activities. Furthermore, receiving VR was more common in companies with low proportion of highly educated employees and with higher sickness absence rates. Conclusions Company-level variation in receiving VR was substantial. Adopting the practices of the companies with highest participation in VR could help to avoid work disability problems.

Background: We examined whether the risk for disability retirement varies between companies over and above the individual-level characteristics of their employees and which company-level characteristics are associated with the risk for any, full or partial disability retirement., Methods: A 30% random sample of Finnish private sector companies with at least 10 employees was used (5567 companies and 301 313 employees). The risk for disability retirement over 6 years was analyzed using multilevel logistic regression. Company size and industry, as well as gender, age, education and social class measured both at the individual- and the company-level were used as explanatory variables., Results: 3.8% of the variance in the risk for disability retirement was attributed to the company level after controlling for individual-level characteristics of the employees. Company-level variance was much larger in partial (11.7%) than in full (4.2%) disability retirement. After controlling for all individual- and company-level characteristics, those working in health and social work activities had increased risk for both full and partial disability retirement. The risk for full disability retirement increased by decreasing educational level of the company. The risk for partial disability retirement increased by increasing company size and was elevated in companies with the highest proportion of women., Conclusions: After controlling for the individual-level characteristics, variation in the risk for disability retirement between companies was modest. The more substantial variation in partial disability pension suggests that companies have a marked role in advancing working with partial disabilities., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.)