The Return to Work Status One Year After Vocational Retraining: Is it an Indicator for Long Term Occupational Participation?

Background and objective Vocational retrainings (VR) in the context of vocational rehabilitation are lengthy and expansive interventions. The question is whether the return to work (RTW) 12 months after VR can be a proxy variable for long term income trajectories. Methods Based on register data of the German Pension Insurance (Scientific Use File SUFRSDLV09B) fixed-effects-regressions were calculated to measure the effect of VR on the annual mean daily income in each of the 3 years after VR compared to initial level prior to VR and depending on the RTW. Results The mean difference for the daily income was about -20(sic) per day. For persons being employed prior to the VR a loss of income up to 50(sic) per day was measured. Persons being unemployed prior to the VR increased their daily income up to 30(sic). Moderate to large effects of the RTW could be measured (d=0.52 to 1.33). Conclusion The RTW 12 months after VR seems to be a good representation for long term income trajectories. Therefore, it can be recommended as an indicator for outcome quality of VR.