1st Period
The Greying of Europe
Europe is one of the oldest regions in the world, but has always had a steady age distribution. However, in recent years, Europe has seen a surprising increase in age, but a negative (.
22% to be exact) growth rate. As a result, the people of europe are getting older, and the number of them is decreasing. As a result of the age increase, the workforce is getting older as well, and most jobs are shifting towards becoming white collar and service type. The average age of a European is 37.7 years old, and is expected to rise to 52.3 by 2050. The ratio of workers to retirees is also expected to increase to 2:1 by 2050 as well. As previously stated, the growth rate is at .22%. This is because of life spans are increasing while the growth rate is decreasing. Because of these factors, most european population pyramids have a very obvious “Hershey’s Kiss” shape. Out of
Europe,
Monaco,
Germany, Italy, Greece and Sweden have oldest workforce. Finally,
Most european jobs are white collar and service related. One perspective on Europe’s aging work force is the one portrayed by most
Americans. The US is essentially younger than Europe, and as a result most Americans do not see the Greying of Europe as a major problem. There are several factors that go into the US’s younger population. First, the US has a much higher growth rate, at 0.7%.
Another factor that goes into the US’s younger population is that in the end it has been established much less less long, and has not had the time to regress into the state that
Europe gradually has. Because of this, on a population pyramid the US still resembles a
“Hershey’s Kiss”, but a much less extreme one. The US has jobs very similar to those of
Europe, being mainly Service and White Collar, as a result of its postindustrial economy. Quite opposite to the Americans, the Japanese have a completely different view of the Greying of Europe. Like the Europeans, the Japanese have a higher aged population and also a relatively slow growth rate. They also have an excellent health care system,