“The ageing of Australia’s population is a well known phenomenon. It has been particularly apparent since the 1960s and is attributed to falling mortality and fertility rates combined with the effect of a baby boom generation as it moves into the older age brackets. For similar reasons the workforce has also been ageing, but over the past two decades the workforce (and especially the full-time workforce) has been ageing at a rate faster than the general population.”
The implications of this rapid ageing are discussed in a short 2 page government release on the issue, that highlights the demographic problems. Download the PDF release here. Or see some additional demographic data, and some work I recently did in Australia with TEC groups here.
The Mercury today is highlighting some of the problems for the government:
“A CRITICAL skills shortage in local government has prompted an unprecedented recruitment drive. Faced with an ageing workforce, councils around Tasmania are concerned the situation could become dire unless young talent is added to the ranks. The skills shortage is hitting the key areas of town/urban planning, environmental health, engineering and building surveying. The Local Government Association of Tasmania is the first in Australia to embark on a recruitment drive.”
Read more on this report here.
Australia’s Ageing Workforce
