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"The Social Europe guide is a bi-annual publication aimed at providing to an interested but not necessarily specialized audience a concise overview of specific areas of EU policy in the field of employment, social affairs and inclusion. It illustrates the key issues and challenges, explains policy actions and instruments at EU level and provides examples of best practices from EU Member States. It also presents views on the subject from the Council Presidency and the European Parliament. The third volume in this series gives an overview of the main demographic trends faced by Europe, such as ageing, a decrease in the working age population and declining fertility. It describes the EU's actions to promote active ageing, and explains EU policy efforts to ensure adequate, safe and sustainable pensions for the decades to come."--Provided by publisher

Active ageing has been discussed in international political organisations and among re-searchers as a major means for combatting the challenges of demographic ageing. This study aims to make a critical-theoretical and empirical assessment of the active ageing concept, challenging the active ageing discourse from two different angles. First, an assessment of the theoretical framework of active ageing shows that the conceptual framework is undertheorised, lacks conceptual and analytical clarity, and fails to propose clear contributing factors and barriers. The second part presents an empirical analysis of the concept of active ageing guided by the following research question: is active ageing realistic—and for whom? Using Danish data subjected to multiple correspondence analysis, it is found that active ageing at the individual level is preconditioned by health, education, having good finances, etc. Furthermore, a Matthew effect of accumulated advantage is found; that is, older adults who are blessed in one sphere of life are also blessed in others, and such inequalities in old age are the outcomes of social life biographies (i.e., cumulative advantages/disadvantages over the life course). Thus, empirical findings indicate that active ageing may be an elusive goal for a large segment of older adults.

AbstractMany voluntary organizations depend greatly on the unpaid services of older volunteers, a significant number of whom are women. At the same time, shifts in welfare policy have been towards emphasizing individual economic autonomy and self‐provisioning, often to the detriment of older, more vulnerable members of society. Using data from an organization working for and with older people in the North‐East of England and through in‐depth qualitative interviews, our study found that volunteering is an expression of citizenship for older people. In our analysis, we identify two strands in the meanings of citizenship for older people: volunteering as leisure and work, and volunteering as care and civic consciousness. These correspond with liberal conceptualizations of citizenship and republican models of citizenship. Data from our in‐depth interviews demonstrate a strong commitment to society and fellow citizens among older people that counterbalances individualistic and instrumental reasons for volunteering promoted by the state and market. Our findings suggest that government views of volunteering as a route to paid work, as a panacea for society and therefore needing to be more 'work‐like', are discordant with the perspectives of older volunteers. Rather than the neo‐liberal views of the 'citizen‐worker' or 'citizen‐consumer', citizenship that is based on the 'common good' and feminist perspectives of 'caring citizenship' are arguably more beneficial to society. Finally, we describe the pressures and constraints facing older people that could discourage formal volunteering in the future.

Active ageing has been discussed in international political organisations and among researchers as a major means for combatting the challenges of demographic ageing. This study aims to make a critical-theoretical and empirical assessment of the active ageing concept, challenging the active ageing discourse from two different angles. First, an assessment of the theoretical framework of active ageing shows that the conceptual framework is undertheorised, lacks conceptual and analytical clarity, and fails to propose clear contributing factors and barriers. The second part presents an empirical analysis of the concept of active ageing guided by the following research question: is active ageing realistic—and for whom? Using Danish data subjected to multiple correspondence analysis, it is found that active ageing at the individual level is preconditioned by health, education, having good finances, etc. Furthermore, a Matthew effect of accumulated advantage is found ; that is, older adults who are blessed in one sphere of life are also blessed in others, and such inequalities in old age are the outcomes of social life biographies (i.e., cumulative advantages/disadvantages over the life course). Thus, empirical findings indicate that active ageing may be an elusive goal for a large segment of older adults.

The year 2012 is designated as the European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations. The aim of the year is to raise awareness of the position of older people in a manner where they can enjoy a better quality of life and still play an active role in society. There are good reasons for designating 2012 as such a year.The OECD has estimated that by the year 2050, more than 33% of men and 38% of women in the EU25 will be 60 years or older compared with 18% and 24%, respectively, for the year 2000. The European Statistical Office projects that by 2060, there will be only two people of working age (15–64) in the EU for every person aged over 65, compared with a ratio of 4 to 1 today. Keeping in mind that an increasing share of the youth between 15 and 30 are studying, the consequences of these figures are even more challenging.Many politicians are seriously concerned about financing of the pensions and welfare systems. Another concern is how to allocate sufficient healthcare personnel to give the ageing population a decent service. These challenges are good reasons for the EU to include "solidarity between generations" as an element in the activity of this year.This special issue on active ageing is a contribution from the Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies to the year of active ageing. The articles examine work and ageing from different angles and horizons of understanding. Together, the articles question some of the myths that exist on ageing and work and assess some of the actions being taken to keep older workers in employment. This issue is therefore an important contribution to the development of our understanding of active ageing and measures used to develop an active ageing policy (.)

Ensuring active ageing, i.e. the optimisation of opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age, is an important growth strategy for the EU. Achieving a successful active ageing policy will require a sea change in thinking about what ageing means in both economic and social terms.

The Active Ageing Index (AAI) can be applied across countries to compare active aging outcomes, evaluate the current situation regarding ageing, and identify the most desired directions for policy action. While the AAI-EU is addressed on a national level, it can also be used for assessing active ageing policies on the municipal level, which is the case in this study. The aim of this article was to assess active ageing amongst older people in western parts of Finland by adapting the methodology used for the AAI-EU. We used GERDA data (n=5,011) collected from people aged 66, 71, 76, 81 and 86 for our descriptive analyses. The results showed that the municipalities differed in their active ageing outcomes, and that men and Swedish speakers generally scored higher on the index, which is something that warrants further investigation. Based on the results, we argue that AAI could potentially be used as a tool to monitor various dimensions of active ageing on a regional level and that gender and ethno-linguistic characteristics should be a central concern for a discussion on ageing in our study region. ; Aktiivisen ikääntymisen indeksiä (AAI) voidaan soveltaa kaikissa maissa aktiivisen ikääntymisen tulosten vertailemiseksi, ikääntymisen nykytilan arvioimiseksi sekä politiikkatoimien tavoitteiden tunnistamiseksi. Vaikka AAI-EU on suunnattu kansalliselle tasolle, sitä voidaan käyttää myös aktiivisen ikääntymisen politiikan tarkasteluun kuntatasolla, kuten tässä tutkimuksessa. Tämän artikkelin tarkoituksena oli arvioida aktiivista ikääntymistä Länsi-Suomessa AAI-EU:n avulla. Kuvailevassa analyysissä käytimme 66-, 71-, 76-, 81- ja 86-vuotiailta kerättyä GERDA-aineistoa (n = 5011). Tutkimuksemme osoitti, että aktiivisen ikääntymisen tulokset eroavat kuntatasolla ja että miehet ja ruotsinkieliset sijoittuivat indeksissä yleisesti korkeammalle, mikä kaipaa lisätutkimusta. Tulosten perusteella voidaan todeta, että AAI on soveltuva työkalu aktiivisen ikääntymisen seurannassa alueellisella tasolla ja että sukupuolen sekä kieliryhmien ominaispiirteet tulisi huomioida ikäntymistä koskevassa keskustelussa tutkimusalueellamme. ; Ett index för det aktiva åldrandet (AAI) används för att jämföra hur olika länder hanterar en åldrande befolkning och lyfter fram var behoven för olika policyinsatser är som störst. Emedan AAI-EU används för att jämföra situationen i europeiska länder, så kan indexet även användas för att jämföra kommuner, vilket är något som vi gjorde i den här studien. Syftet med studien var således att undersöka det aktiva åldrandet bland äldre i västra Finland genom att använda metodologin som använts för AAI-EU. Vi använde GERDA-data (n=5011) insamlat bland 66-, 71-, 76-, 81-, och 86-åringar för våra deskriptiva analyser. Resultaten visade att det fanns skillnader i det aktiva åldrandet mellan kommunerna. Resultaten visade även att fanns skillnader mellan svensk- och finskspråkiga så att svenskspråkiga placerade sig högre på indexet. Baserat på resultaten från studien så konkluderar vi att ett regionalt AAI kunde användas för att följa upp det aktiva åldrandet på kommunnivå och att skillnader mellan män och kvinnor samt skillnader mellan etnolingvistiska grupper borde lyftas fram i diskussioner om det aktiva åldrandet i vår region.

The Active Ageing Index (AAI) can be applied across countries to compare active aging outcomes, evaluate the current situation regarding ageing, and identify the most desired directions for policy action. While the AAI-EU is addressed on a national level, it can also be used for assessing active ageing policies on the municipal level, which is the case in this study. The aim of this article was to assess active ageing amongst older people in western parts of Finland by adapting the methodology used for the AAI-EU. We used GERDA data (n=5,011) collected from people aged 66, 71, 76, 81 and 86 for our descriptive analyses. The results showed that the municipalities differed in their active ageing outcomes, and that men and Swedish speakers generally scored higher on the index, which is something that warrants further investigation. Based on the results, we argue that AAI could potentially be used as a tool to monitor various dimensions of active ageing on a regional level and that gender and ethno-linguistic characteristics should be a central concern for a discussion on ageing in our study region.

"This report provides a range of examples on how the Active Ageing Index (AAI) can be used as a practical tool by policymakers, researchers and other interested parties to identify areas where appropriate policies can realise the active potential of older people"--Executive summary

The aim of this paper is to analyse active ageing and retirement in Finland at both the individual worker level and the firm level. The Finnish pension system will undergo some remarkable changes from the year 2005 on: the whole of an individual's working life will determine his or her pension income, there will be higher accruals for postponed retirement as of age 63 with a flexible retirement age of 63-68, and pension levels will be automatically corrected, depending on changes in life expectancy. The desired effect of these new pension rules is that the average retirement age would increase by three years from the current 59 years, but the real labour market effects of the pension reform remain unclear. Based on the interviews that have been conducted, large Finnish firms do not believe that the new pension system will have much effect on the retirement age. Some firms have started to implement their own programmes to improve the longer employability of older workers. The organisations that have experienced large changes and adopted new technology have implemented an active ageing policy more successfully than the others. ; Tässä tutkimuksessa analysoidaan suomalaisten työntekijöiden eläkkeelle siirtymistä ja yritysten eläkestrategioita aktiivisen ikääntymisen näkökulmasta. Suomalainen eläkejärjestelmä tulee uudistumaan vuodesta 2005 alkaen niin, että eläke määräytyy koko työssäoloajan tuloista, kertymäprosentti kasvaa ikävuodesta 63 alkaen eläkkeelle siirtymisen ollessa joustavaa ikävuosina 63-68 ja eläkkeiden tasoa tullaan korjaamaan eliniän odotteen muutosten mukaan. Näiden uudistusten tavoitteena on nostaa keskimääräistä eläkeikää kolmella vuodella nykyisestä 59 vuodesta, mutta todellisia vaikutuksia eläkekäyttäytymiseen ovat vielä vaikeaa ennustaa. Suuret suomalaisyritykset eivät haastattelujen perusteella usko uuden eläkejärjestelmän vaikuttavan eläkeikää nostavasti ja jotkut yritykset ovat käynnistäneet omia aktiivista ikääntymistä tukevia ohjelmiaan. Aktiivisen ikääntymisen ohjelmat ovat onnistuneet parhaiten sellaisissa yrityksissä, jotka ovat läpikäyneet suuria organisaatiomuutoksia ja hyödyntävät uutta teknologiaa.