Effects of Vocational Re-training on Employment Outcomes Among Persons with Disabilities in Germany: A Quasi-Experiment

Abstract

Purpose To investigate how completing vocational re-training influenced income and employment days of working-age people with disabilities in the first 8 years after program admission. The investigation also included the influence of vocational re-training on the likelihood of receiving an earnings incapacity pension and on social security benefit receipt. Methods This retrospective cohort study with 8 years follow up was based on data from 2399 individuals who had completed either a 1-year vocational re-training program (n = 278), or a 2-year vocational re-training program (n = 1754) or who were admitted into re-training but never completed the program (n = 367). A propensity score-based method was used to account for observed differences and establish comparability between program graduates and program dropouts. Changes in outcomes were examined using the inverse probability-weighted regression adjustment method. Results After controlling for other factors, over the 8 years after program admission, graduates of 1-year re-training, on average, were employed for an additional 405 days, 95% CI [249 days, 561 days], and had earned €24,260 more than without completed re-training, 95% CI [€12,805, €35,715]. Two-year program completers, on average, were employed for 441 additional days, 95% CI [349 days, 534 days], and had earned €35,972 more than without completed re-training, 95% CI [€27,743, €44,202]. The programs also significantly reduced the number of days on social-security and unemployment benefits and lowered the likelihood of an earnings incapacity pension. Conclusion Policies to promote the labor market re-integration of persons with disabilities should consider that vocational re-training may be an effective tool for sustainably improving work participation outcomes.Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Employment effects for people with disabilities after participation in vocational training programmes: A cohort analysis using propensity score matching

“…Therefore, four years after the start of VR, when most participants should have finished VR -even if other programmes followed training -, the employment prospects of training participants exceeded those of non-participants. Similar positive employment outcomes after training participation were also found for the unemployed [12] and for rehabilitants supported by the SPI [4].…”

“…No general effect of training was identified. In order to determine the effect of training participation compared to discontinued training, another recent study [4] identified a positive employment and income effect for those who completed their training. Despite the existence of these studies, they are difficult to compare to our study.…”

“…In this context, vocational rehabilitation (VR) is designed to develop and restore the ability to work and increase employment prospects for people with disabilities in Germany. However, there are very few studies that confirm that VR improves employment chances [4,5], though VR and especially vocational training programmes are very cost-intensive for the welfare state and time intensive for the participants.…”

Return to work after medical rehabilitation in Germany: influence of individual factors and regional labour market based on administrative data

“…Studies from unemployment contexts (Hirschenauer 2013 ), vocational rehabilitation (Hetzel and Streibelt 2016 ; Reims and Tophoven 2018 ; Echarti et al 2020 ) and medical rehabilitation (Kaluscha et al 2013 ) indicate that the regional labour market decreases RTW. In these contexts, the labour market is operationalized either indirectly via assignment to a regional unit (Leinonen et al 2019 ; Echarti et al 2020 ) or directly via characteristics of the regional labour market, such as the unemployment rate (Kaluscha et al 2013 ; Hetzel 2015 ; Hetzel and Streibelt 2016 ; Reims and Tophoven 2018 ). In our opinion, there is evidence for vocational rehabilitation (Hetzel and Streibelt 2016 ; Reims and Tophoven 2018 ; Echarti et al 2020 ), but not for medical rehabilitation.…”

The impact of vocational rehabilitation on employment outcomes: A regression discontinuity approach

“…Propensity score matching has been a commonly used technique (16)(17)(18). A recent German study comparing vocational training program participants and drop-outs found that the participants had more working days and higher earnings, less days on social security benefits and lower probability of receiving earnings incapacity pension (19). Another German study, focusing on the unemployed, found better employment prospects among persons accepted to VR than among rejected applicants (20).…”