Missing at work - Sickness-related absence and subsequent career events

Sickness-related absence can be viewed as indicator of an employee's health status or work effort. In both cases, absence may affect the employee's career. Evidence from German panel data reveals a significantly negative (positive) link between short-term sickness-related absence and the probability of a subsequent promotion (dismissal). Instrumental variable analyses suggest no causality in this context. We find no evidence of systematic gender differences in the link between absence and subsequent instances of mobility. Throughout our analysis, we give special attention to the role of health. According to our evidence, health appears to play no significant role for individual career advancement.