Making Old People Work: Three False Assumptions Supporting the “Working Longer Consensus”

Abstract

Pensions and social insurance—key parts of the welfare state—redistribute income and wealth across class by providing, or not providing, practical and legitimate access to basic income without requiring work for pay. Mistaken attention to generational equity and austerity economics creates a set of beliefs that older people should work more, forming what the article calls an emerging “Working Longer Consensus,” which is supported by three false doctrines. Using OECD data and secondary sources, the article counters each false doctrine by showing that healthy longevity gains are not distributed equally; there is no demonstrated trade-off between public spending for the elderly and children; and a greater supply of elder labor does not necessarily mean economic prosperity. The Working Longer Consensus, like the Washington Consensus, promises that pension austerity will yield economic prosperity.

The Fate of Social Modernity

“…Thus, the above 'strategic' warnings against an 'apocalyptic demography' (Robertson 1997) have contributed to the staged life course model of the industrial age and the related generational welfare contract being called into question on a greater scale. A further case in point is the emergence of a cross-national 'working longer consensus' (Ghilarducci 2021) connecting with a call for the right to a personalised transition to retirement. While this proposition accords well with the idea of individual autonomy in later life, it primarily suits the interests of (upper) middle class citizens as a social group that has come to question the concept of mandatory retirement (Steiber and Kohli 2017).…”