This study aims to analyze the determinants of poverty exit for the elderly through comparison of pre-and post-COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the government’s senior job program. The Korea Welfare Panel Survey (KoWePS) was used, and the determinants...
This study aims to analyze the determinants of poverty exit for the elderly through comparison of pre-and post-COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the government’s senior job program. The Korea Welfare Panel Survey (KoWePS) was used, and the determinants of poverty exit for those aged over 65 were analyzed in two cohorts between 2017-2019 and 2020-2022. To this end, Propensity Score Matching Method was conducted at the beginning of each cohort, and the data of each cohort was merged. Also, the Cox's Professional Hazard Regression Model was conducted to analyze the determinants of poverty exit for the elderly pre-and post-COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of the analysis, first of all, it was shown that the senior job program was statistically insignificant for the elderly’s poverty exit before the outbreak of COVID-19. However, while it was statistically significant post-COVID-19, it was ineffective in helping the elderly exit poverty. Second, the government's decommodification policy, which combines social insurance income and public transfer income post-COVID-19, also was statistically insignificant in escaping poverty for the elderly. Based on the results of this study, the government should endeavor to achieve the original goal of the senior job program, and it is necessary to optimize the decommodification policy in order to protect the vulnerable elderly from COVID-19.