Germany has the oldest workers in the EU

2026-02-05 08:35:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The German population is above average age, and of course this also applies to the labor market. This is dramatic, especially considering the future of the pension system.

In no other European Union member state is the working population as old as in Germany. In 2024, of the approximately 40.9 million employed, 9.8 million of them were between the ages of 55 and 64, the Federal Statistical Office announced on Tuesday.

This corresponds to a percentage of almost a quarter (24.0 percent) - "the highest value among all EU countries", as it was said. For comparison: the EU average for this age group is 20.1 percent.

The retirement age is increasingly being postponed

The second largest share in the EU after Germany is recorded by Italy: there, people aged 55 to 64 account for 23.0 percent of the employed.

In Bulgaria this percentage is also high at 22.3 percent. According to these data, Malta has the proportionally lowest number of older employed people in the EU: only around one in nine employed people (10.8 percent) is between the ages of 55 and 64.

Even in Luxembourg (12.8 percent) and Poland (15.2 percent), this age group constitutes a relatively small share of the employed.

Causes of higher age

"The main reason for the high percentage of older employed people in Germany is the increasingly pronounced aging of the population," the statisticians explain. "Plus, people in this country are retiring later and later."

The average retirement age for women and men in 2024 was 64.7 years. In 2004, it was 63.0 years for women and 63.1 years for men. One of the reasons for the increase is the gradual increase in the legal retirement age to 67 years by 2029.

Also, according to the same statements, the abolition of two models of early old-age pensions, which can be partially used from the age of 60, also played a role. The pension system is under pressure.

The key to solving the problem

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expects a significant strain on Germany's pension system. The working-age population will shrink over the next 40 years, according to a study published at the end of 2025. "Longer working lives will be key to financing pensions in the future," the OECD advises.

Thus, the legal retirement age can be linked to life expectancy. At the same time, early retirement models should be made less attractive.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced drastic changes to the pension insurance system earlier this week. In future, pensions will increasingly be oriented towards the private insurance sector based on capital investments./ DW