To further enhance the understanding of factors impacting female participation in the workforce based on health levels and to measure the excess work capacity of middle-aged and older female groups by residence and educational level.
Data of women aged 45–74 were accessed from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) from 2011, 2013, 2015, to 2018. The health status of women was comprehensively evaluated by single health variables and frailty index. A Probit model was used to measure the excess working capacity of women by region (rural/urban) and educational level, taking all women aged 45–49, rural women aged 45–49, and rural (illiterate) women in all age groups as the benchmark, respectively.
The excess capacity of all Chinese women aged 50–64 is 1.9 years, and that of women aged 50–74 is 5.1 years. The excess work capacity of women in urban and rural areas and with different educational levels is heterogeneous. The excess working capacity of urban women aged 50–64 is 6.1–7.8 years, and that of urban women aged 50–74 is 9.8–14.9 years. The excess working capacity of urban women aged 50–64 is about 6 times that of rural women. The excess work capacity of highly educated women was 3 times higher than that of illiterate women.
The potential work capacity of Chinese women remains to be exploited, especially for urban and highly educated middle-aged and older women with better conditions of health, whose potential is more significant. A rational retirement policy for women and the progressive implementation of an equal retirement age for men and women will contribute to further advancement of gender equality and healthy aging in the workplace in China.