Labor Force Participation in Adults With Osteoarthritis or Joint Symptoms Typical of Osteoarthritis: Findings From a Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging

Objective

The purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between osteoarthritis (OA) and joint symptoms typical of OA and labor force participation.

Methods

Data are from the baseline questionnaire of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging for respondents aged 45 to 74 years at baseline (n = 24,427). Individuals were categorized into one of five mutually exclusive arthritis status groups: diagnosed OA, diagnosed other type of arthritis, two to three symptomatic joint sites and no diagnosed arthritis, one symptomatic joint site and no diagnosed arthritis, and no arthritis and no joint symptoms. Age-stratified robust log-Poisson regression analysis was used to examine the association between arthritis status and labor force participation.

Results

Overall, 39% of the analytic sample reported being out of the labor force. Those with OA aged 45 to 54 and 55 to 64 years were significantly more likely to be out of the labor force than those with no arthritis or no joint symptoms, with prevalence ratios (PRs) of 1.34 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.10–1.65) and 1.13 (95% CI 1.06–1.21), respectively, with similar results for those with two to three joint symptoms and no OA in the 45 to 54 years age group (PR 1.37 [95% CI 1.07–1.76]). There was no difference for those aged 65 to 74 years. Being an informal caregiver increased the likelihood of nonparticipation in the labor force for those aged 55 to 64 years (PR 1.09 [95% CI 1.04–1.15]).

Conclusion

Our results suggest that an exclusive reliance on an OA diagnosis to understand impact on labor force participation may miss a large segment of the middle-aged population, which may have undiagnosed OA or be at greater risk of OA because of joint problems.