Bridging the ʺAgeGapʺ- Development of social partnersʼ initiaves for managing age related challenges
PRESS RELEASE
Ljubljana, December 2019
Demographic change and an aging population is one of the main causes of labor shortages
The population of the entire European Union is aging rapidly. Demographic change and the challenges of aging, and the consequent labor shortage, are facing the whole of Europe. Slovenia is no exception, as the ageing of the Slovenian population is accelerating and the average age of employees is increasing.
In 2018, one fifth (19%) of the European population was over 65 years of age. By 2080, it is projected that nearly twice as many people will be 65 and older as they are today, and will represent one-third of the European population. The fastest-growing part of the population is the age group over 80 - in 2014, 5.1% of people in the European Union were 80 years of age and over, by 2080 there will be 12.3%. In Slovenia, 20% of the population are people aged 65 and over, which means that almost every fifth person in Slovenia is over 65 years of age. By 2050, however, this proportion will increase further, up to 30%.
Demographic changes are reducing the potential supply of labor, which is becoming a growing problem for Slovenian employers and is a worrying problem for the future of our economy. Population aging has many implications, and it is therefore increasingly important to tackle the challenge of aging, which is important for everyone - the individual, the company and the country.
Failure to adequately respond to the challenges of aging and to respond in a timely manner will have a significant impact on the Slovenian economy, the aging population presents many challenges for businesses and social partners. The latter will also have an impact on the sustainability of the pension system, an increased deficit in the health fund, problems with financing long-term care, etc.
Population aging is not a challenge for the future, but a challenge for the present, which is why the European social partners raised the issue of active aging as a lifelong process in the Independent Framework Agreement on Active Aging and Intergenerational Approaches. The signatories (BUSINESSEUROPE, UEAPME, CEEP, and ETUC) encourage employers and trade unions to look into active aging issues and take action to raise awareness of active aging and promote regulation of active aging in collective agreements at activity and company level.
The European Union-funded AgeGap project involves employers' associations from Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Slovakia, Romania, Montenegro and Macedonia examining policies and practices to meet the challenges of an aging workforce facing employers and employees. The study aims to present good practices of companies, collective agreements or other forms of cooperation between employers and trade unions that promote active aging through intergenerational approaches.
The project is researching national findings or aspects of the area under consideration. The short questionnaire is addressed to employers and workers and is available at the following link:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7H9YZZW
Your opinion and possible examples of good practice will help to review the situation in the field of employee age management and the intergenerational approach in Slovenia and enable further comparative analysis.
With financial support from the European Union.