The ashes of the battle over retirement at 64 are barely extinguished when economists are now pleading to postpone the retirement age until 68. It’s a question of demographics. With the exception of Africa, all regions of the world will see a slowdown in the growth of the working-age population. “In Europe, the situation is even more worrying, with an expected decline in the working-age population of -0.6% on average per year by 2050,” explains Ana Boata, director of economic research at Allianz. Trade. Result: the population aged 20 to 64 in Europe is expected to decrease by 439 to 370 million people by 2050.
In a study on the subject, the German insurer calculates that postponing retirement to 68 would allow Europe to expand the active population by 6 million people, which would help maintain the growth of the economy. economic activity and, ultimately, to the balance of pension schemes. Today, only one out of two Europeans aged 60 to 64 is still working. This is not to plead for a postponement of the legal retirement age, the subject of Emmanuel Macron’s controversial reform. But, in countries where this is not the case, simply to authorize those who wish to continue to work to do so, and to give them the conditions so that this is possible. In summary, to fight against “ageism” in the labor market, argues the study.
However, if at 64 now, France retains one of the legal retirement ages among the youngest in Europe, it is possible in theory to continue one’s career until the age of 70 or more in France, at least in the private sector (the public has specific age limits). That is to say that a company cannot normally force an employee to retire before age 70. And if the employer agrees, you can even work beyond this age.
“Arbitrarily imposing a mandatory retirement age obscures two important factors: changing life expectancies and different job requirements. In Singapore and Sweden, where older workers have the right to work until the age of 68 or 69, the labor market participation rate of the oldest populations is particularly high,” continues Ana Boata. In Germany, raising the retirement age to 67 is expected to add 2 million people aged 65 and 66 to the working-age population in 2050.
To achieve this objective, companies must make a considerable effort to keep their oldest employees, organize training to guarantee their skills or adjust working hours. Governments on their side should put in place incentives for employers to retain their older workforce.