Page 35 - increasing-the-value-of-age-guidance-in-employers-age-management-strategies

Increasing the value of age: guidance in employers’ age management strategies

and will probably result in labour shortages in the future. The labour market and
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the employee of the future are likely to be different from what they are now ( ).

3.2.2. Older workers have lower employment participation
The Lisbon European Council of 2000 and the Stockholm European Council of
2001 agreed new strategic goals for strengthening employment, economic reform
and social cohesion in a knowledge-based economy. This position was reinforced
by the EU 2020 strategy.
One of the principal goals in the strategy is to reach, by 2020, overall
employment of 75%, with an average employment rate for older people aged 55
to 64 of 50%.
In progress towards these targets there are significant differences between
countries in the employment of people in the age group 55 to 65 (Figure 2).
In Denmark, Germany, Estonia, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden and the
UK the employment rate of older people is above 55%; Sweden outperforms
other countries with 73%. This is mostly due to much higher employment rates
among women than in the EU on average (69% compared to 40%). In Belgium,
Greece, Hungary, Malta, Poland and Slovenia the employment rate is 40% or
lower.

Figure 2. Employment rate, age group 55 to 64, in 2011 and growth over 2000-12
(%)

Source: Eurostat, 2011, labour force survey (online data code: lfsi_emp_a).

From 2000 to 2011 most countries show increasing employment of older
workers (12% higher compared to 2000 for EU-27). Bulgaria, Germany, the

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( ) This information is based on Eurostat’s labour force survey (reference year 2011).

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