FRANCE The

Trends
Figure 4: Employment rates, Greece and EU 15, both sexes, 2001 (%)
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
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summits (70%). The employment rate for older workers aged 55-64
was estimated at 38%, slightly less than the average for EU-15
(38.5% in 2001), but still 11.5 percentage points below target (50%
by 2010). As Figure 4 shows, the employment rate in Greece lags
behind the average of EU-15, for the age groups 50-54 and 55-59. In
contrast, employment rates among older workers 60 years of age
and above are higher in Greece than in EU-15. As noted earlier,
employment rates vary distinctly between the sexes, with older
women exhibiting much lower rates than men. Thus in 2001, the
employment rate of older women (55-64) was 22.5%, 6.6 percentage
points below the average for EU-15 and 15.5 percentage points
below the equivalent rate for both sexes. As the rapid rise in female
labour force participation took place in the 90s, however, these
cohorts should raise the employment rates of older female workers
within the next two decades.
In the period between 1995 and 2001, the employment rate of older
workers (55-64), fell in Greece by 3.0%. It should be noted that
during the same period, the employment rate of older workers has
increased in all other EU Member States, with the exception of Italy
and Austria (for the EU as a whole the improvement was 2.6%).
Although at this level of analysis, it is not clear what has caused the
drop in the employment rate of older workers in Greece, it would
appear that the reversal of the trend towards earlier retirement has
already begun in most EU Member States.
Details on the occupational structure and the sectoral distribution
of older workers are generally scant6 . In general, the distribution of
older workers between basic and more advanced sectors appears to
be different from that of younger workers. In 1998, 60% of men aged
55 to 59 were in employment and around 70% or more of those aged
60 to 64 worked in agriculture, manufacturing, distribution and
hotels and restaurants. In comparison, only 50% of the 25 to 49 age
group is employed in one of these sectors. Further, it would seem
that older workers are more concentrated in declining sectors than
younger ones. According to estimates, 72% of those aged 55 to 59 in
Greece
EU 15
50–54 55–59 60–64 65–69 70+
Source: EUROSTAT, LFS
work were employed in low growth or declining sectors (notably
agriculture). The same holds for over 80% of those aged 60 to 64,
compared with only 56% of those aged 25 to 497 .
Another feature differentiating older people in employment from
younger ones is the proportion of self-employment. As expected,
the incidence of self-employment is much higher among older
workers in relation to younger workers. Almost half (47%) of the
55-64 age group in employment and 75% of 60 to 64 year-olds were
self-employed in 1998. This finding is closely related to the
importance of agriculture which employs a large share of older
workers.
Women older workers tend also to exhibit a higher incidence of selfemployment
in relation to their younger counterparts. It is estimated
that around 40% of women aged 55 to 64 in employment were selfemployed
in 1998. Another significant proportion of women in the
same age group (around 40%) was working as unpaid family workers.
Consequently, those in employment working as wage or salary
earners were just a minority (slightly above the 20% mark).
The average level of educational attainment of older people is
significantly lower than that of their younger counterparts. Some
73.4% of those aged 55-64 had a low educational level (ISCED 2 or
lower), as opposed to 27.5% of those aged 25 to 34. This finding
partly reflects the increase in educational levels observed over time
and partly the structure of economic activity in Greece and the high
incidence of agricultural employment among older workers. The
cohort of workers aged 55-64 in the next two decades will be better
educated than their counterparts today and rising educational
attainment should help raise the absorption of larger groups of
older workers in the future. However, in 2000, almost three quarters
of workers aged 55-64 were classified as persons with low
educational attainment in Greece, as opposed to just over half of
their European counterparts, and this has certain implications.
First, older workers are at risk of being excluded from employment
in the services sector, which has been a major source of new job
6 For a treatment of these issues, based on earlier data, see: Richardson, C., and T. Vasilainas (1996), “The employment of older people in Greece”, Proceedings of the
Conference on Ageing and Society, EKKE, 1996.
7 See: Employment in Europe, 1999.
100 Spring 2003 | European Employment Observatory Review