– We see that it is more common today for older people to remain in the labour market compared to how it was 20 years ago. Employment has doubled during the period, among those aged 65 to 74. Older women mainly work in health care and social work, and work part-time to a greater extent than men. Older men, on the other hand, work on average more hours a week and in financial activities and business services, says Charlotte Breitz, statistician at the Labour Force Surveys at Statistics Sweden.

Doubled employment

Employment in Sweden, among people aged 65–74 has doubled over the past two decades. Between 2001 and 2023, the employment rate increased from 10 to 20 percent for those aged 65–74 years. During this period, women’s employment rate increased from 7 to 16 percent, and men's from 13 to 25 percent.

The most common industry for 55 to 64-year-olds does not change after the age of 65. This indicates that these are the industries in which older people mainly choose to continue working within. For both 55–64 and 65–74-year-old women, about one-third work in health care and social work. One-fifth of men aged 55 to 64 years and one-quarter of those aged 65 to 74 years old are working within financial activities and business services. Among people aged 55—64 years old, for women it is common to work in education and for men in manufacturing. However, after the age of 65 there are fewer employed in these industries.

For men over the age of 65, agriculture, forestry, and fishing are one of the most common industries. In terms of the number of people working in the industry, the difference between 55–64 and 65–74 years is small, only about 4 000 people. This could be explained by the fact that farmers and foresters do not retire in the same way as in other industries, they do not close their businesses just because they have reached a certain age.

There is a correlation between industry and occupation, which is also reflected in the occupations that people continue to work in after the age of 65. For older women, personal care occupations are the most common occupational group, and the most common occupations do not vary much between age groups. On the other hand, there are more differences between the age groups among older men. Agricultural and horticultural occupations is one example of an occupation that is common among men aged 65 to 74 years, while it is far less common among those aged 55 to 64 years old. An explanation for this could be that this type of occupations is not only about work but can also be a lifestyle.

Over time, the most common occupational group among older people have been management occupations and occupations with requirements for higher education. It is in this occupational group that the elderly has been most active over the past ten years. This may be related to the fact that older employed people generally have a higher level of education, compared to older people who are not employed.

Contentment with working hours

Even though the proportion of employed older people has doubled over the past two decades, the average actual working hours have remained relatively stable within the age groups over time. The majority of older employed people also state that they do not want to change the number of hours they currently work, they are content as it is. This could indicate that the older people who remain in work have a greater opportunity to decide for themselves regarding their working hours.

The average, actual, weekly working hours for older women and men show a clear trend: men work more hours per week than women, and working hours decrease with age. Older women tend to work part-time to a greater extent than men, also after they reach the age of 65. In 2023, the proportion of women aged 65–74 who worked part-time was around 75 percent, while the corresponding figure among men was around 65 percent.

There is a larger proportion of women who have permanent employment compared to men, but the attachment to the labour market also changes with age. Women are more likely to move into temporary employment, while men are more likely to become self-employed and family workers.

People aged 75–89-years old

In 2023, the employment rate of 75–89-year-olds was 7 percent, which corresponds to 65 700 employed persons. The employment rate was 4 percent for women and 10 percent for men. The oldest age group confirms several patterns that could be seen among the 55–74-year-olds, the majority of employed people over the age of 75 work part-time and the degree of attachment to permanent employment decreases further. It was also for this age group that management occupations and occupations with requirements for higher education were most common, and the largest proportion of all employed people over the age of 75 have a post-secondary education. As with the 55–74-year-olds, also the 75–89-year-olds are content with their number of working hours.

The report in Swedish can be found in the publication: 
Labour Force Surveys (LFS) 2024:1 – Theme: Older people's participation in the labour market 2001–2023.

2024-04-24