Data Analysis and Related Applications, Volume 2

24Labor Force Aging in the Czech Republic: The Role of Education and Economic Industry

The economic activity of both men and women workers seems to decrease with age. However, the issue is more complex since the rate of economic activity of older workers is very different in each industry; it also depends on the level of education. We assume that workers with a higher educational level will have a higher rate of economic activity than workers with a lower educational level.

This chapter deals with the analysis of economic activity of older workers by level of education in individual industries of the Czech economy. Our estimates are based on detailed data from both the Labour Force Survey and Statistics on Income and Living Conditions for the last few years.

We show that economic activity varies by educational level and is specific to each industry of the economy. As the Czech population is aging, the government is proposing to increase the statutory retirement age. We show that the setting of the retirement age should take place at the level of these analyzed factors, not uniformly.

24.1. Introduction

One of the government actions to mitigate the effects of an aging population in European countries is increasing the retirement age. In the Czech Republic, the retirement age is gradually increasing, which is currently capped at the age of 65 years. The setting is uniform, regardless of any factors such as educational level, the health status of workers or the type of employment. ...