Title: Crossing the Age-35 Threshold and Overwork: Evidence from China’s migrants
Abstract: The issue of overwork among migrants has garnered significant attention due to its severe negative impacts. However, existing research has largely overlooked the potential role of age-related labor market barriers. This study exploits the socially salient age-35 threshold in China, where formal and informal hiring rules often make age-35 a focal point in labor-market screening. Using a Sharp Regression Discontinuity Design (RDD) with China Migrants Dynamic Survey (CMDS) data from 2011 to 2018, the age-35 threshold is leveraged as a quasi-natural experiment to identify the relationship between the age-35 threshold and overwork among migrants. We find that crossing the age-35 threshold is significantly associated with an increase in both the probability and intensity of overwork. This association is particularly pronounced among migrants with low human capital, inter-provincial migrants, and “rural-urban” migrants. Mechanism analysis indicates that this effect is linked to three potential pathways: lower monthly income, reduced employment probability, and occupational downgrading. Further analysis reveals that medical insurance may serve to alleviate the overwork tendencies associated with this age cutoff.
Keywords: Age-35 threshold; overwork; mechanisms; medical insurance; regression discontinuity design. This study investigates the relationship between the age-35 threshold and overwork among migrants.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-08687-7
