Policies to extend working life have become a central response to the development of ageing populations. Delaying retirement is viewed as a means of mitigating the effects of worsening demographic ratios whilst increasing financial resources for later life. Such policies are variously presented as an ‘unavoidable obligation’ (Reday-Mulvey, 2005, p 195), ‘a fiscal and social imperative’ (PwC, 2010) or simply part of an injunction that people should ‘live longer and work longer’ (OECD, 2006). According to The Economist (2009), retirement has been ‘overdone’. Many European governments, including that in the UK, have moved to raise pension ages along with a range of other measures such as anti-age discrimination legislation. It is in this context that our ability to maintain the capacity of individuals with significant health conditions to remain in, or return to, work is increasingly under the spotlight. While the ageing population sharpens our concern for health and wellbeing at work, this volume is not limited to a consideration of older workers. The personal and social desirability of enabling people with health conditions to remain in work if they are able and want to do so is relevant across all working age groups. A number of reviews have highlighted the importance of ‘good work’ to lifelong health and wellbeing in work and into retirement (Waddell and Burton, 2006; Black, 2008; Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2008; Marmot, 2010). This is tempered, however, by the further finding of the Marmot review that ‘more than three-quarters of the population do not have disability-free life expectancy as long as 68’ (2010, p 17). In the UK, with the state pension age expected to rise to 68 by 2046, we can expect more and more people in work to be coping with a significant chronic health condition, in particular mental health issues and musculoskeletal disorders, which are the two big health concerns that compromise individuals’ ability to work (Black, 2008).

It is clear that the impact of ill health on an individual's ability to remain in paid employment depends on complex interactions between biological, psychological, social and organisational factors. This edited collection seeks to explore these compound connections linking a variety of disciplines and professional groups.