Project description
Population ageing has become a driver for policies that encourage healthy and economically productive ageing. Among other things, the state pension age is increasing to promote the extension of paid working lives and, consequently, to reduce the fiscal pressure of state pensions on federal government. Whereas in the past, it was often the male breadwinner who retired alone, with a slightly younger partner at home, currently most people face the retirement decision as a couple. Of sixty-year-old working women and men today, 72% has a spouse who is also working. These demographic shifts raise important new research questions, like: How do spouses influence each other's retirement decisions? Does a retired spouse ‘pull’ the working partner out of the labor market? To what extent are there gender differences in spousal influences? How do solo and joint retirement affect people's health and well-being? The project will use data from the NIDI Pension Panel Survey (2015-2018-2023). This is a prospective multi-level cohort study (N>5000) among wage employed older workers (60-65 at baseline) enrolled in three of the bigger Pension Funds in the Netherlands. In the study both partners are included as respondents.

This project is funded by Netspar. The postdoc project is based at NIDI in The Hague. The candidate will be part of the ‘Work and Retirement Theme Group’. The postdoc will write articles for international refereed journals, as well as for more policy oriented outlets. The postdoc is also expected to participate in acquisition of external grants and collecting new survey data to develop an own research line.

Main tasks

• Writing academic articles.
• Data analysis of survey data.
• Contribution to the dissemination of research findings.
• Contribution to data collection.
• Contribution to acquisition.

Requirements

• Acquired a PhD in Sociology or a related discipline (or being on the verge of acquiring a PhD in this area).
• Solid knowledge of statistical methods for the analysis of data from individual and/or household surveys, preferably panel and multi-actor data.
• Knowledge of main theories in family sociology and gerontology.
• Excellent writing and social skills.
• Preferably fluent in Dutch.
• Candidates are expected to be available no later than 1 May 2025.

Fixed-term contract: 1 year (possible extension to 3 years total).

Terms of employment
We are offering a Postdoc position initially for one year. Any extension will be contingent on performance, availability of funds, and the human resource needs of the infrastructure. Our cao stipulates a maximum of 4 years in total for a temporary research-based contract.

Depending on education and experience the minimum salary is 4,060 and the maximum salary is 5,331 gross per month for a full-time appointment (scale 10 cao Nederlandse Universiteiten/KNAW). This is exclusive of 8% vacation allowance, 8.3% year-end bonus, travel allowance, internet allowance, home working allowance and pension accrual with ABP.

The KNAW offers its staff an excellent package of secondary benefits. A package that meets the different needs of employees depending on their stage of life, lifestyle or career ambitions. For example, by working an extra two hours a week, it is possible to increase the number of days off from 29 to 41 days a year (with full-time employment).

Non Dutch applicants are required to relocate to The Netherlands. If and when necessary, NIDI will apply for the residence permit. Non Dutch employees may qualify for a Tax break (30% Ruling).

For a complete overview of the terms of employment, please refer to the web page: werken bij de KNAW.

Applying for a Certificate of Good Conduct can be part of the employment procedure.

NIDI - KNAW

About NIDI
The Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) is a leading European demographic research institute. NIDI is part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and affiliated with the University of Groningen. It is located in the center of The Hague providing a unique and stimulating research environment in the broad field of population studies. Currently the staff of the institute consists of about 65 employees of different levels of seniority and organized in a rather horizontal structure within four thematic research groups. The working environment is highly international and NIDI provides ample opportunities for training and development.

Work & Retirement

Current and future workers need to work much longer than in previous decades to deal with the social and financial challenges imposed by an ageing population. In a rapidly evolving retirement landscape, we study the transition from work to retirement. We study how older adults make decisions on retirement and how the transition into retirement impacts life and wellbeing after retirement. In addition to studying the retirement process from the perspectives of employees, we are also interested in how employers deal with the retirement of employees and how their organization adapts to an extension of workers' careers. To answer our research questions, we regularly collect data among workers and employers: the NIDI Pension Panel Survey (conducted in 2015 and 2018 in the Netherlands collected information from over 6.500 older workers, their spouses, and their employers. We use these data (among other sources) to conduct interdisciplinary research that combines insights from labor economics, sociology, psychology, and health sciences.

Additional information
For additional information you may contact prof. dr. Kène Henkens (henkens@nidi.nl).