’ labour market participation is high, and their share in the working age population has increased significantly in developed countries ( e. g. in europe from 4. 4 per cent in 2002 to 8. 2 per cent in 2016 ). few papers in the literature have found a negative impact of migration on employment of host - country workers ; on the contrary, given that foreign - born and native workers have different skill sets, their respective labour services are often found to be complementary. 3 the positive contribution to labour market participation of some demographic factors is likely to slow in the future. notably, the baby - boom bulge in the age structure, which for a long time has sustained the share of working - age population, is now starting to push up the share of retirees. for given retirement rules, ageing reduces the participation rate. according to the european commission, 4 however, the share of active individuals aged 20 - 64 will still increase by 3 percentage points between 2016 and 2070, owing in part to increases in the statutory retirement age in many countries. future trends in migration are exceedingly difficult to predict. migration pressures are likely to increase, as more people in less - developed countries cross the threshold between absolute poverty ( which affords no opportunity to move ) and that condition where one has acquired the minimum amount of knowledge and resources required to pursue a better life elsewhere. on the other hand, in developed countries issues about the social acceptability of immigration loom increasingly large in the political debate and the management of migrants ’ flows and their integration are highly controversial. trends in labour demand trends in the demand for labour are driven by the twin primal forces in contemporary economies : technological progress and globalisation. many fear that downward pressures are deriving from both of these forces in the advanced economies. historically, there have always been concerns that technological innovation would have negative effects on employment, especially during downturns. in this never - ending debate, views have been rather disparate, with prominent economists occasionally – and not always prudently – venturing into dismal predictions. in the third edition of his principles of political economy and taxation ( 1821 ), ricardo wrote : ‘ the opinion, entertained by the labouring class, that the employment of machinery is frequently detrimental to their interests, is not founded on prejudice and error, but is conformable to the correct principles of political economy ’. 5 peri, g. ( 2016 ), immigrants, productivity, and labor markets in journal of economic perspectives,

per cent at the end of 2007. the default rate is rising mostly among the smaller and medium - sized banche popolari and those located in the south. it is hard to compare the technical situation of cooperative banks in italy and in the other european countries where they play a significant role, as the data are scanty and lacking in uniformity. table 6 gives some figures ; all in all, there does not appear to be any great difference between the state of italian and other european cooperative banks. some liquidity problems emerged in conjunction with the tensions in the interbank market. the easing of the strains, the issue of new securities that can be posted as collateral ( mainly through self - securitizations ), and the bank of italy ’ s emphatic call for the adoption of more sophisticated risk management and liquidity management systems all contributed to a broad improvement in the liquidity profile. steps still need to be taken to develop sound cash management strategies and to reinforce the organizational machinery, so as to achieve integrated risk management. there are some weak points in organization, according to the bank of italy ’ s periodic examinations. most of the shortcomings involve the functioning of corporate bodies – compromised, in some instances, by an uneven distribution of tasks and by unsatisfactory internal debate, with repercussions on strategy and coordination – as well as the efficacy of management instruments, the detection and management of risks, and the scope and depth of audits. risk management – including operational, legal and reputational risks – has not always been adequate to the cooperative banks ’ size and complex business. this applies above all to the listed banks, which have been subjected in recent years to growing attention and pressure from the market, particularly as regards the effectiveness of their risk control process. these anomalies are not generalized, however. the need for improvement is found above all where governance systems are not entirely efficient, with rigid, crystallized arrangements and insufficient control over management. even where they have not yet affected the other profiles, organizational inadequacies always indicate a latent, potential risk. as such, these failings are an important signal that should not be neglected, because they impinge sharply upon growth and competitiveness. like capital adequacy, organizational adequacy is a safeguard, the precondition for sound and prudent management. 5. governance the governance of the cooperative banks has been the subject of lively debate in recent years, with strongly