| dc.description.abstract | Increasing numbers of young people receive benefits for long lasting work disability in Norway, disability pension included. The report investigates work history and previous receipt of health related benefits and other public incomes among young disability pensioners. The data are from the FD-Trygd database linking administrative information from the National Social Insurance Administration, Statistics Norway, and the Directorate of Labor. This is event history data for the years 1992-2001 for all people who were below 35 years when being granted a disability pension in the years 1998-2001. 78% had full pension whereas 22% had graded pensions and were normally expected to do some work besides.More than half of the young disability pensioners had mental health or behavioral problems. Among those being granted a pension before 25 years, even more had mental and behavioral disorders, but also diseases in the nervous system and congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities than among those being granted the pension at ages 25-34.There is some geographical (county level) variation in disability retirement of young people in general and for musculoskeletal diseases in particular, but also for injuries. Disability retirement among young people is seemingly not influenced by (correlated with) local (county level) unemployment rates.The data provide limited information about how long the health problems have lasted, particularly concerning those born with impairments. Average duration of recorded work disability was 6-7 years among those being granted the pension after 25 years, slightly longer for men than for women. This duration of work disability before disability retirement vary between counties particularly among those with mental health problems.How much education do they have? Several of the young disability retirees have no education at all. Many have education at secondary level, including vocational training, but few have education beyond secondary school, and few attend schools or universities after 20 years of age compared with other young adults.Had they been working? 73% had some income from work during five calendar years preceding the year they were granted a disability pension. But only 27% had earned as much as 100 000 NOK during one of these years when sick pay is excluded. Had they been shifting between employers? Not really. Less than one per cent had been working for more than four employers. Median duration of employment was 31 weeks. Where had they been working? A study of businesses and trades from occupational registers indicates that many had worked in the public sector with health and care work, in several cases relatively short time before disability retirement. This could indicate that such work is used in rehabilitation programs, but could also indicate that health and social work is not appropriate for young people with limited work ability. Few had worked in finances, in water/power supply, in construction or in agriculture. Information about occupations in the disability registry also indicates that few had worked in primary (agriculture etc.) or secondary (industrial work etc.) sector. The low numbers with industrial work is contrary to previous studies of people being granted a disability pension at higher ages.Had they received similar benefits before disability retirement? Many did receive benefits for work disability in previous years; the proportion increased from one third five years before till more than 70% one year before disability retirement. These proportions were somewhat higher among women than men and among those with musculoskeletal diseases than those with mental health problems. The majority had been clients at the national public employment service, most of them being classified as occupationally handicapped, and some had received social benefits. These are all benefits for various kinds of unemployment. More men than women had been unemployed whereas more women had received (social insurance) benefits for lone mothers.How many worked after being granted a disability pension? In the years following disability retirement, 70% of those granted a full pension had no income from work at all, and only 6% earned 20 000 NOK from work. Most of those with graded pensions did work, typically with moderate incomes. | en |
