Upbeat view from AARP

Nancy LeaMond, AARP’s Director, International Affairs, takes a positive view of how the world outside the US is responding to the demographic changes.

In her end of year appraisal she contrasts how 2 years ago Europe was aware that ‘something must be done’ but had little idea what the ‘something’ might be. She points out how Germany, Japan, France and other OECD countries have now begun the process of implementing reforms to their state pension systems and national retirement ages.

The European Commission’s “Future of Europe Employment Strategy,” set ambitious goals when calling for Member States to increase by five years the average age of retirement by 2010, and for 50% of persons aged 55-64 to be employed (the figure was then 39%). Three years into the Strategy, progress has been minimal (the figure now stands at 40%). I guess this failure is not surprising since I would bet only a handful of Europeans know that such an Employment Strategy exists.

Another example of progress she quotes is the fact that Volkswagen and Roche have made it to the AARP annual list of the Best Employers for Workers over 50. The depressing thing about this list is how few blue chip companies appear.

She concludes her article ‘….In most cases, the proposed policy changes are small and don’t fully meet the challenge - but they are a start. In 2004, we will watch to see if the momentum continues…..’

She makes a valiant attempt to put a positive spin on the few small things that governments have done to embrace these changes. I think we can be certain that the drive for change will come from the corporate sector and market forces. It will be these pressures that will force governments to take the matter seriously not a set of centrally agreed ‘strategies’.