The workforce ageing phenomenon: statistics, policies and practices

The workforce ageing phenomenon is recently affecting most of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries, due to a general ageing of their populations and a higher average retirement age of the workforce. The European population (referring to the 28 EU member countries) is projected to grow from 507.2 million in 2013 to 522.8 million in 2060, with the percentage of seniors (65 years or older) forecasted to grow by 10%. A similar trend is observed in both the USA and Japan. The importance of this issue has attracted a wide range of researchers and practitioners. Here, we aim to provide an overview of statistics regarding ageing population employment in OECD countries and compare the percentage of ageing workforce in each country. Furthermore, we aim to give an overview of governmental policies, actions and examples of companies’ perspectives and practices toward ageing workforce in the work environment. This study can help decision-makers and practitioners to better understand the ageing problems in the work environment and governmental polices point of view.