Lifetime employment history is a stronger predictor of vulnerability in old age than place of residence. Older adults who spent their working lives in agriculture or the informal sector experience lower income security, weaker pension protection and greater health risks than those who retire from formal-sector employment.

Employment History Predicts Elderly Vulnerability Better Than Geography

The authors analysed nationally representative data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) to examine how different lifetime employment patterns shape outcomes in old age. They found that older adults with agricultural and informal-sector employment histories consistently experienced lower income security, weaker pension coverage and higher health risks than formal-sector retirees. These differences remained more pronounced than regional variations, leading the authors to conclude that employment history is a more meaningful predictor of later-life vulnerability than geography alone.

Policies for older adults often distinguish populations by where they live. This research suggests that understanding how people worked throughout their lives may provide a more effective basis for designing pensions, healthcare and social protection programmes that reach those most at risk.