Do spouses coordinate their work exits? A combined survey and register analysis from Norway.

Research on spouses' joint work exits is scarce, although household factors such as spouses' work status, marital quality, and caregiving burdens are likely to affect seniors' work engagement. We therefore examine whether the work exit probability of one spouse affects that of the other. Discrete-time hazard regression analyses of survey data linked to later registry information including all gainfully employed married respondents aged 50-74 with a working spouse (N = 1,764) were used to assess subsequent work exits. A spouse's work exit is a strong predictor of a respondent's work exit (hazard ratio 3.1, 95% confidence interval [2.5, 4.0]). Educational attainment, poor marital quality, and spouses' health and care needs do not predict work exits. Surprisingly, no gender differences are observed. Research on larger survey samples to distinguish different work exit routes and reasons for spouses' joint work exits appears warranted. To account for cultural and welfare state characteristics, cross-national studies ought to be undertaken.