AGRICULTURAL DECLINE AND THE SECULAR RISE IN MALE RETIREMENT RATES

Explanations for the decline in labor force participation rates of older men prior to 1950 have focused on the sectoral shift from agriculture to manufacturing in part because labor force participation rates of men living in farm households have been consistently higher than those of men Living in nonfarm households. I argue that, at the beginning of the 20th century, men who were farmers were no less likely to retire than nonfarmers. Past researchers, who examined cross-sectional data, were misled because retired farmers often migrated from their farms. The findings have implications for the secular rise in retirement rates and the secular decline of fertility. (C) Academic Press, Inc.