The most important message of this EESC Statement, which was adopted without vote against: the by far most effective strategy with regard to the ageing population in Europe lies in the maximum utilization of existing employment potentials. This can only be achieved by a targeted growth policy and by increasing the number of high-quality jobs, which are subject to social security contributions.

It is not demographic relations (between older people and those of working age), which determine the future financing requirements of pension schemes; but it is the development of the economic dependency ratio, hence the relation of recipients of benefits to actively employed people, which is of vital importance. This is also underpinned by the Dependency Ratio Calculator, which was developed by AK Wien and has already been successfully presented in Brussels, which enables the graphic depiction of the differences between demographic and economic dependency ratios and shows the effect of different labour market scenarios on the development of the economic dependency ratio.

Further information:

Stellungnahme des WSA zur Zukunft des Europäischen Arbeitsmarktes (German only)