Manuel Flores, a professor and researcher for the Research Institute for Evaluation and Public Policies (IRAPP) has recently published an article in the Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics. In this article, the professor uses European microdata to quantify both the direct impact of health on employment and the indirect impact of health on employment which occurs through salaries. 

In his study, Flores states that the total impact of health on employment is due to the direct impact and not the indirect impact that occurs through salaries.  As he explained in his project, the main daily impact of health on employment “suggests that the role of health policies on employment that allow positions of workers with health problems to be adapted so that they can continue to work is instrumental”.

In the conclusions of his article, Flores argues that all developed countries are facing the challenge of extending the working life of their employees. Due to the significant direct impact health has on employment and the fact health problems increase with age, it is important for job positions to be adapted so that workers with health problems can continue to be active and not leave the workforce. 

The main aim of IRAPP is to improve individual decisions in the areas of health and education by undertaking multidisciplinary research. “We think that the economy is a powerful tool to understand the world and we am to be innovative academics who apply economic analysis to social and political challenges in our society” said a spokesperson for the Institute.  

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