Working Longer: Older Workers in the Labour Market

Why more people are working into their sixties and seventies, the benefits and barriers, and how workplaces can adapt.

As people live longer and healthier lives, many are working longer. In many rich countries, the share of people in their sixties who work has risen significantly since the 1990s.

Why people work longer

Longer, healthier lives: many people in their sixties are fit and able to work.
Pension reforms: many countries have raised retirement ages or reduced incentives to retire early.
Financial need: some people have not saved enough or face high living costs.
Wanting to work: many people enjoy their work and the social contact and purpose it brings.

Benefits

For individuals: more income, larger pensions, and research suggests staying active may support health and wellbeing.
For employers: experienced workers bring skills, knowledge and reliability.
For economies: more workers help offset shrinking working-age populations and support public finances.

Barriers

Age discrimination in hiring and promotion.
Physically demanding jobs that are hard to continue into later life.
Lack of flexibility, such as part-time options.
Outdated skills when training is not offered to older workers.
Health problems that are more common with age.

Adapting workplaces

Employers can support older workers through flexible hours, phased retirement, where people gradually reduce working time, training at all ages, ergonomic workplaces and redesigned jobs. Japan, with one of the oldest workforces, requires employers to offer ways for employees to keep working until 65 and encourages opportunities up to 70.

A gradual retirement

An engineer approaching 65 does not want to stop working abruptly. Her company offers phased retirement: she works four days a week, then three, while mentoring younger colleagues. The company keeps her knowledge longer, she keeps earning and staying active, and the transition to retirement feels smoother.

Inequality

Working longer is easier for people in office jobs with good health. Manual workers, who often have lower life expectancy and more health problems, may find it much harder. Raising retirement ages can therefore affect groups unequally.

Thinking older workers take jobs from young people

Research across many countries generally finds that higher employment of older workers does not reduce employment of young people. Jobs are not a fixed number shared among age groups.

Key takeaways

More people are working into their sixties and beyond.
Longer, healthier lives, pension reforms and financial need drive the trend.
Barriers include age discrimination, demanding jobs and lack of flexibility.
Phased retirement, flexibility and training help, but working longer is harder for manual workers.