The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging and research on older workers

After years of decline, labour force participation has been increasing in North America in the past decade among older workers, including those aged over 65. While various explanations have been proposed, there are questions about the work capability and the health and safety of these older workers. The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA), which began data collection in 2010, aims to understand the dynamic process of aging and adult development. The CLSA will follow 50 000 Canadians, aged 45–84 at recruitment, for 20 years. Of these, 20 000 will be interviewed longitudinally by phone. The other 30 000 will answer in-depth interviews at regular intervals, undergo functional and neuropsychological tests, and provide blood samples for analyses in the short and long term. Interview modules will cover many topics. Items on work will include current or last job, duration on that job, main occupation through one's career, reasons for retirement or ending retirement (when applicable), and retirement planning. Several options for sampling each subcohort have been considered and will be discussed. Some of the sample has been selected to build on a previous survey by Statistics Canada. Other participants are being recruited via provincial health registries. The presentation will also outline research questions that can be answered by the study, such as the health and safety challenges for older workers or the interplay between work, retirement, and physical and cognitive status. The CLSA provides a remarkable opportunity to study important questions on older workers.