Training and retirement behavior in the perspective of the firm

In this paper we will analyze how retirement behavior is affected by a worker’s firm-specific or general training history. This relationship is studied in the perspective of upward sloping earning profiles. Moreover, we examine the effects of technological change on the likelihood of early retirement. Using U.S. data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Older Men, we find that workers with a firm-specific training history retire earlier than workers with a general training background. This indicates that shared investments in firm specific training are embedded in upward sloping earning profiles that create productivity-wage differentials for older workers. Furthermore, we show that high paces of gradual technological change lead to that workers retire earlier, while technological shocks have no significant effect on the likelihood of early retirement