Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the "Report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions report requested by Stockholm European Council: Increasing labour force participation and promoting active ageing"
Date: 2002-07-03
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: EU employment policy, European social policy, demographic analysis, labour market

22.11.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 287/1

II

(Preparatory Acts)

COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the ‘Report from the Commission to the Council,
the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions
report requested by Stockholm European Council: “Increasing labour force participation and
promoting active ageing”’

(2002/C 287/01)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

having regard to the Report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic
and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, requested by the Stockholm European Council:
‘Increasing labour force participation and promoting active ageing’, COM(2002) 9 final;

having regard to the decision taken by the European Commission on 24 January 2002 to consult the
Committee under the first paragraph of Article 265 of the Treaty establishing the European Community;

having regard to its Bureau’s decision of 6 February 2002 to instruct the Commission for Economic and
Social Policy to prepare the Committee’s work on this subject;

having regard to the Commission communication on the future of health care and care for the elderly:
guaranteeing accessibility, quality and financial viability, COM(2001) 723 final;

having regard to the Commission communication: Supporting national strategies for safe and sustainable
pensions through an integrated approach, COM(2001) 362 final;

having regard to the Committee of the Regions’ opinion on the EU economy: 2000 review, (CdR 469/
2000 fin) (1);

having regard to the Committee of the Regions’ opinion on 1999 — International Year for Older People,
(CdR 442/98 fin) (2);

having regard to the Committee of the Regions’ opinion on the demographic situation in the European
Union, (CdR 388/97 fin) (3);

having regard to the conclusions of the European Council meeting at the Barcelona Summit, 15 and
16 March 2002;

(1) OJ C 253, 12.9.2001, p. 29.
(2) OJ C 374, 23.12.1999, p. 36.
(3) OJ C 251, 10.8.1998, p. 14.

C 287/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

22.11.2002

having regard to the final declaration of the United Nation’s Second World Assembly on ageing, in
Madrid, Spain on 8-12 April 2002 and the consequent plan of action;

having regard to the Draft Opinion CdR 94/2002 rev of the Commission for Economic and Social Policy,
adopted on 17 April 2002 (rapporteur: Mr van Nistelrooij — NL-EPP, Member of the Noord-Brabant
Provincial Executive),

adopted unanimously the following opinion at its 45th plenary session on 3 and 4 July 2002 (meeting of
3 July).

1. Views of the Committee of the Regions

The Committee considers the European Commission’s
1.1.
report to be highly significant, not only because it focuses
political attention on the ageing issue in the European Union
and its social and socio-economic impact but also because it
underlines the necessity of including an additional policy on
the European agenda.

1.2.
Increasing the labour force participation of older
people is an essential element in tackling the ageing issue.
Given the major impact of ageing on the labour market
the
because of
Committee endorses the target set by the Stockholm European
Council to increase the average EU employment rate among
older women and men (55-64) to 50 % by 2010.

the low activity rates of older workers,

said, however, the Committee thinks that, to be successful, any
action taken must be part of a comprehensive, balanced
strategy. The Committee considers it desirable to pursue an
integrated approach, not only in view of the close correlation
between the labour market and social security and pensions,
but also in order to strike a good balance between financial
and social targets.

1.6.
A comprehensive approach means that, in addition to
measures designed to increase the labour-force participation
of older people, other issues connected with ageing also have
to be broadly addressed. These include pensions and health
care. Both these sectors must adapt to the rapid growth in the
number of people aged 65 and over. This category will be
made up of two groups:
(i) very old, dependent people
with major care and nursing needs and (ii) active, healthy
pensioners. Higher life expectancy also means that people are
pensioners for longer. The existence of more pensioners —
who are drawing their pensions for longer — makes a review
of current pension systems essential.

1.3.
The Committee feels that if this ambitious target is to
be attainable, short-term action is essential. The policy priori-
ties set out in the report are an important starting point. The
Committee considers it vital that, when implementing the
policy proposals, greater account is taken of demographic
developments in regions and local authority areas than has
been the case so far.

1.7.
The Lisbon European Council considered that adapting
pension and health-care systems, and systems for care of the
elderly, was one way of cushioning — as far as possible — the
impact of an ageing society. As well as increasing labour-force
participation, the Council also mentioned debt reduction. All
the Committee would say on that subject in this opinion is
that Member States have the potential for further public debt
reduction, thus giving their budgets greater scope to meet
increased ageing-related spending.

1.4. Member States must transpose the European Council’s
target figure into the national action plans which they draw
up under European employment policy. Given the important
role played by regional and local authorities in labour-market
policy in general, and in fostering the labour force participation
of older people in particular, these annual reports must include
‘decentralised’ labour-market developments. The Committee
feels that this consideration must also be borne in mind in the
2003 assessment of the European employment strategy.

2. Committee of the Regions’ recommendations

2.1.

Labour-force participation: a broader context

1.5.
Clearly, the choice of tools used to meet the target is
contingent on national, regional and local circumstances. That

The Committee endorses the overall thrust of the
2.1.1.
priority policy initiatives set out in the European Commission
report. It notes, however, that the Commission report sees the

22.11.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 287/3

whole issue very much in economic terms, in particular by
laying stress on the need for older workers to have access to,
and take part in, the labour market, since, after all, a job in
older age can help boost personal well-being. The Committee
would point out, however, that older people’s well-being may
also be determined by non-economic activities and making an
important contribution to the ‘social economy’. For instance,
many older people perform voluntary work in their spare time
and provide informal care. The Committee recommends that
better recognition be given to the unpaid work done by older
people.

2.1.4.
The Committee regrets that the European Com-
mission report fails to specifically address the relationship
between older workers and ICT. It calls for a policy to deal
with this problem, because access to the labour market — and
people’s ability to keep their jobs — are increasingly dependent
on information and communication-technology skills. The fact
that older workers often do not possess these skills substan-
tially reduces their chances of working in ICT-sensitive sectors.

2.1.2.
The Commission report touches briefly on the status
within the labour market of people with a disability. The
Commission rightly notes that the vast majority of people
with a disability are sidelined, yet it fails to submit any
proposals to alleviate their social exclusion. The Committee
considers it vital that the social inclusion of people with a
disability should be high on the European, national, regional
and local political agenda. In policy terms, the starting point
must be (i) that people with a disability should have equal
access to the labour market and should enjoy job security,
(ii) that the guiding principle should be the United Nations’
standard rules on the subject, and (iii) the numerous positive
examples of integrating people with a disability — even serious
disabilities — into the labour market, through national policies
and especially through local programmes, taking into due
account the results and experiences of projects financed by
past and present Community programmes and initiatives
whilst at the same time guaranteeing the involvement, in
relevant decision-making processes, of civil society bodies
(NGOs, trade unions, voluntary organisations, social services)
representing the interests of people with a disability.

2.1.5.
The CoR also draws attention to population ageing
in rural areas, which results from urbanisation: young people
moving away from rural areas to cities. This leads to a quick
increase in the average age of the population in several rural
areas and calls for specific attention and action. Similar
phenomena can be identified in other outlying regions, be they
mountain regions, island regions or those suffering industrial
decline on the outskirts of large cities. At the same time,
considering the rising trend amongst young families to leave
city centres in favour of renting, buying or building their
homes in residential areas, there is an urgent need to draw
attention to the opposite phenomenon, whereby the centres
of large cities are mainly populated by older people often
living alone.

2.2.

Lifelong learning

Likewise, particular emphasis should be placed on ensuring
that people with disabilities are able to remain in employment
on a more long-term basis throughout their lives, and action
should be taken to encourage this.

2.2.1.
The Committee shares the Commission’s view that a
policy geared specifically towards older people is, in reality,
limited and outdated. The Committee strongly advocates
promoting the participation of older people in the labour force
by spreading education, training and workload more evenly
across a person’s career. The aim must be a less rigid
distribution of work, learning and leisure throughout life.

2.1.3.
The Committee backs European Commission efforts
to improve the status of women on the labour market.
Although responsibility for increasing the labour-force partici-
pation of (older) women lies in the first place with local
and regional authorities and with national governments, the
European Union can play a key role, especially in promoting
new insights into the issue and fostering the exchange of good
practices. As local employers, local and regional authorities
can apply these practices in a variety of ways within their own
organisations in order to increase labour-force participation,
particularly among older women.

2.2.2.
A key condition for achieving this aim is a fundamen-
tal change in the attitudes and behaviour of employers and
workers alike. Changes in cultural and psychosocial factors
lead to companies developing
must, among other things,
incentives as part of human resources management so that
people have an interest in working longer and invest more in
timely efforts to improve their own knowledge and skills. As
well as an age-sensitive staffing policy, this also requires that
people be discouraged from taking up early retirement by
introducing flexible pension rules and adapting the social
security, labour and education systems.

C 287/4

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

22.11.2002

2.3.

Pensions

2.5. Migration

2.3.1.
The European Commission feels that it is essential to
support national strategies for safe and sustainable pensions.
The mutually reinforcing policymaking areas that have an
impact on pension sustainability (employment, social and
economic policy) must be coordinated and integrated. To this
end, the European Commission proposes applying the open
coordination method.

2.3.2.
The Committee feels that, in the coming year, it is
important to examine the relationship between labour-force
participation and older people and the implications for pension
systems. It is important to consider the effects of pensions on
government-budget balances in different countries. Pension-
funding levels are low in many countries, and the future
financing of pensions could become a problem if the pension-
funding issue is not tackled right away. Crucial here is the goal
of postponing retirement combined with a successful increase
of labour participation. Making pension schemes more flexible,
including integrated public/private systems, makes it possible
for people to carry on working even after retirement age.

2.4. Health care

2.4.1.
On the subject of health care, the CoR takes the view
that in future, too, solidarity must continue to be the principle
which underlies health-care systems. Member States’ health-
care systems differ from each other. What is imperative is that
high quality health-care services be available to everyone at a
reasonable cost. National approaches must be respected and
differences in starting points taken into account. Besides
placing emphasis on the goals of accessibility, quality, and
affordability, as already expressed by the European Com-
mission (1), attention should also be given to the aspect of
freedom of choice.

2.4.2.
The CoR recognises that one of the factors determin-
ing the quality of health care is the way in which it is able to
respond to the preferences of users. Policy must not be based
on the health-care services available. Demand-driven services
are helping older people, too, to have freedom of choice.

( 1) The Commission communication on the future of health care and
care for the elderly: guaranteeing accessibility, quality and financial
viability, COM(2001) 723 final.

2.5.1. Worker mobility in the EU can make an important
contribution to achieving the strategic goal set at the Lisbon
European Council of making the EU into the most competitive
and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, capable
of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and
greater social cohesion. Freedom of movement for workers in
the European market can be promoted by a large number of
measures, such as the recognition of training and diplomas,
the removal of socio-economic differences which hinder
migration, and the like.

2.5.2.
The CoR does, however, believe that migration does
not provide a lasting solution to the problem of the ageing
population. Account must, though, be taken of the fact that
labour shortages will encourage more worker-migration in
future. A flood of workers may well migrate from the candidate
states, in particular, to the present EU Member States. Given,
inter alia, the demographic change which is likely to take place
in these states, this may have a major impact on economic and
social development in the candidate states. In the CoR’s view,
measures should be taken in these states to prevent a brain
drain to the present EU Member States. In this context, too,
regions can play a key role by making use of the ‘learning
regions’ concept. Ongoing dialogues can be established with
regions in the candidate states to exchange knowledge and
information on regional labour-market policy in general and
how to increase older people’s participation in the labour
force, in particular.

2.6.

Partnership

2.6.1.
Regional and local authorities are ultimately respon-
sible for developing and implementing a broad approach
which promotes the participation of older people in the labour
force. The CoR shares the European Commission’s view that
such an approach will prove successful only if there is close
cooperation with the social partners and other relevant
organisations in society, such as educational establishments.
The positive experience gained by the Province of North
Brabant in the Netherlands, together with dozens of other
regions, in implementing the EU territorial employment pacts
confirms the usefulness of such forms of cooperation. The
territorial employment pacts provide for close cooperation
with local authorities and the social partners in the field of
labour-market policy. The CoR therefore urges that formal
ratification be given to these forms of cooperation.

22.11.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 287/5

they fail to show an understanding of

2.6.2.
On such an important issue as the ageing population,
the public must also play a vital role. Policies for cushioning
the effects of an ageing population have no chance of success
if
the knowledge
possessed by older people and their wishes. Thus, senior
citizens should take an active part in decision-making. There
is a clear economic necessity to take the elderly seriously:
an aged society has significant consequences for the age
distribution within the labour force, the future affordability of
social security systems and the financing of care and services.
However there is also a social necessity. The elderly themselves
are more and more often the ones who stand up for their own
interests and rights, being more emancipated than elderly
generations before them and wanting to continue taking an
active part in society.

2.7.

Learning regions

2.7.1.
Schemes under which regional and local authorities
can learn from each others’ experience (‘learning regions’) are,
in the CoR’s view, very valuable. The CoR calls upon the
European Commission to take measures to establish networks
between regions and local authorities which would enable data
and examples of good practice in increasing older people’s
participation in the labour force to be exchanged between
regional and local administrations where the demographic
trends are comparable.

Brussels, 3 July 2002.

2.7.2.
The CoR considers that the wealth of practical
experience acquired in the different regions and sectors and
(policy) performance comparisons provide a vital basis for
establishing a strategy for increasing labour-force participation
at regional and local level. The problem is that there is no clear
overview of the measures which have been and are being taken
at regional and local level. The CoR therefore reiterates the
proposal it put forward in its opinion on 1999 — International
Year for Older People — that a vademecum of good practice
be drawn up setting out the experience gained by local and
regional authorities with regard to the occupation of older
people.

2.7.3.
The CoR would at the very least propose that there
should be an EU conference on local and regional perspectives
and practices on facing the challenge of an ageing population,
and is prepared to cooperate with the Commission and other
relevant partners (such as NGOs) on this exercise. In the CoR’s
view, it is important that the proposed conference discusses
demographic trends at regional level, which may, moreover,
differ considerably from region to region. In this respect the
improvement of statistical
information, especially in the
accession countries has to be discussed. Reliable information
does, after all, help to determine the choice of instruments,
such as peer review or benchmarking, for tackling the challenge
of the ageing population.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Albert BORE