Can Active Labour Market Programmes emulate the mental health benefits of regular paid employment? Longitudinal evidence from the United Kingdom

Wang, S; Coutts, A; Burchell, B; Kamerāde, D; Balderson, U

Abstract

Active Labour Market Programmes (ALMPs), which form important components of employment support policies around the world, have been found to improve mental health and wellbeing of participants. However, it remains unclear how these health effects compare with the effects of different types of employment for men and women. Using 1991–2019 panel data in the UK, we find that unemployed women derive similar mental health benefits from ALMPs compared with employment. Unemployed men also benefit from ALMPs but obtain significantly more health benefits from formal employment. Such benefits are particularly pronounced in full-time, permanent and upper/middle-status jobs. Further analyses reveal that programmes that deliver human capital training have larger mental health benefits than employment assistance ALMPs. These findings provide a more nuanced understanding of the mental health impacts of ALMPs compared with different types of employment, and highlight the need for a more gender-sensitive design in labour market interventions.

Citation

Wang, S., Coutts, A., Burchell, B., Kamerāde, D., & Balderson, U. (2021). Can Active Labour Market Programmes emulate the mental health benefits of regular paid employment? Longitudinal evidence from the United Kingdom. Work, Employment and Society, 35(3), 545-565. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017020946664

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 1, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Oct 10, 2020
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2021
• Deposit Date: Oct 12, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 12, 2020
• Journal: Work, Employment and Society
• Print ISSN: 0950-0170
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-8722
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Volume: 35
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 545-565
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017020946664
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017020946664
• Related Public URLs: https://journals.sagepub.com/home/wes
• Additional Information: Funders : Cambridge Political Economy Society Trust;The Health Foundation;Major Project of the National Social Science Fund of China; Projects : The Employment Dosage: How Much Work is Needed for Health and Wellbeing?; Grant Number: 1273834; Grant Number: 19ZDA149