Study title

There is an urgent need to make the health of over-50s more visible in order to better support later-life working. Of people aged 50-64, 44% have a long-term health condition and 21% of older workers who leave employment ‘early’ (i.e. before SPA) cite health problems as the primary reason for leaving. Leaving employment under these circumstances then has subsequent negative consequences for lower quality of life and well-being well beyond retirement age. The SHAW (Supporting Healthy Ageing at Work) project was a 3-year multi-stage project which aimed to better understand the reciprocal nature of health and work among over-50s in three different case settings. This data set comprises the 82 transcripts from the qualitative lifecourse interviews which are available via the Edinburgh DataShare repository.Working with employers, employees, professional bodies and other key stakeholders this project will co-design innovative workplace interventions to support the health and well-being of older workers (aged 50+), enabling them to stay in paid work for longer and increasing their overall well-being. Context: There is an urgent need to make the health of older workers more visible. One in three workers in the UK are aged 50+, and this figure is set to rise in coming decades. 44% of people aged 50-64 have a long- term health condition, and 21% of older workers who leave the labour market 'early' (before State Pension Age) cite health problems as the primary reason for leaving. New research is urgently needed to identify the most appropriate actions employers can take to prevent health conditions from developing in their older workforce, and to support older employees who have existing health problems. It is important to fill these gaps in our understanding because, with the right workplace supports in place, older people are more likely to be able to extend their working lives even if they experience long-term health issues. This urgency has been heightened by the...