Budoucnost jako kritérium: objektivní šance, investiční rozhodování a pracovní dlouhověkost
The future as a criterion: objective chances, investment decisions and working longevity

Summary/Abstract: The study examines working longevity in the Czech Republic in the context of population ageing, labour market changes and the extension of working lives. In addition to considering working longevity as the ability and motivation of individuals or as a consequence of pension policy, the study views it as the outcome of the long-term production of working futures. Theoretically, the article draws upon the concept of objective chances, the sociology of expectations and uncertainty, the literature on sustainable employability and work ability, and research into the institutional classification of clients in public employment services. Empirically, it is based on the analytical triangulation of three studies: a vignette experiment involving employers, an analysis of Czech Labour Force Survey data for the period 2013–2021, and a vignette experiment involving Labour Office of the Czech Republic caseworkers. The findings reveal that higher ages do not operate in recruitment as an independently dominant barrier but should be interpreted in conjunction with other characteristics that function as signals of future work value. The labour market trajectories of persons aged 50–65 further demonstrate that the objective chances of continuing in work are socially differentiated by age, health, education, gender and experience of unemployment. The institutional dimension shows that access to further support is filtered by both objective need and assessments of the cooperativeness of the applicant. The article argues that working longevity emerges recursively: previous work trajectories, institutional experiences and decisions on support act to shape the future chances of individuals and, moreover, influence whether they are perceived as persons with a realistic working future.

• Details
• Contents