Later-life Careers as a Volatile and Equalizing Trajectory: A Long-term Perspective on Analytical Skill Usage across the Life Course in Japan

Studies on the life course process of labor market inequality have shown that occupational statusdiverges early in one’s career and remains stable in the midlife period; however, the long-termthe trajectory of one’s career, including the pensionable age, is still unclear. Using retrospective datamatching with occupational information networks in Japan, I describe how analytical skill usage,which is a detailed component of class mobility, changes or remains stable from 20 to 69 years ofage. I find that careers are more volatile in later life and that volatility appears as a decrease in skilllevel. Men who enjoy greater opportunities for training and promotion within a firm experience asignificant decrease in analytical skill usage compared with women. The educational difference inanalytical skill usage is persistent in later life, implying that general human capital has a durablebenefit in later life. The results highlight that the divergent pathways in one’s early career do notnecessarily continue in later life. Rather, the advantage acquired in one’s early career can be lostlater in life, especially for men.