Not everything is so bad
As society ages, so it ages – regardless of how many people come from Ukraine, Belarus, the countries of the former Soviet Union and other countries of the world.
According to the data of the Department of Statistics, in 2024 At the beginning, 3 million people lived in Lithuania. 73 thousand population, of which about 222 thousand are foreigners. The number of Ukrainians, Belarusians, Kazakhs, Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Kyrgyz sometimes grew during the year.
Since the population capable of bearing children is relatively low, more people leave the labor market than enter it. This is one of the consequences of an aging society.
The situation in the labor market is such that the older generation has lower employment, there are more unemployed people, and salaries are not the highest.
However, the professor emphasizes that part of the population, even after reaching retirement age, still wants to work: some need extra money, others enjoy work. However, not all employers are ready to accept older workers, so the question may arise – is there really such a shortage of workers?
Society is rapidly aging and the population is decreasing not only in Lithuania, but also in other European countries. “Lithuania looks quite average among other countries – it is not exceptional in any way, except that the situation here is somewhat better than in Western countries due to a certain delay in the development of our society”, – to the portal lrytas.lt taught by D.Burneika.
21st century increased emigration at the beginning of the 20th century quickly “aged” Lithuania, which is why the country is characterized by a rapid aging of society. However, in all countries the population is aging and the birth rate is low, although some countries are taking encouraging measures.
The only thing that supports the country’s demographic stability is immigration and re-emigration. It is recalled that a few years ago the forecasts for Lithuania were not very bright, but the situation is much better than expected.
Declining population is not a bad thing in itself, although people tend to think that it is only good when the population of a country is growing. Although it is known that the population will decrease, it is not clear what changes may take place with emigration and for what purpose foreigners will come to the country, how long they will stay here and whether they will start a family.
Nevertheless, now is also a good time for those who are just finishing school or university and looking for a job. It should not be difficult for these residents to do so, and the salaries should be pleasing. If not for them, some jobs can be filled by immigrants who create added value.
In the latter sectors, we would not find many people of the older generation either, so the labor market can really shrink, even after deducting the arrivals from other countries.
Not only Lithuania faces problems
Four years ago, in 2020, there were 616 thousand persons receiving old-age pensions, when in 2024 618 thousand people. However, if all employed people are compared – whether they are self-employed or under employment contracts, in 2020 was 1 million 422 thousand, when the number has now exceeded 1 million. 524 thousand
The Deputy Minister of Social Security and Labor, Martynas Šiurkus, calculates that during this year, the number of working people increased by a hundred thousand, while the number of pensioners increased by only a few thousand. This suggests that the numbers are “not tragic” or alarming.
“However, looking at a very long period of time, it is clear that there will be certain challenges in all of Europe, in all countries”, assured the vice-minister, adding that the direction chosen by Lithuania is a good one.
It is believed that opportunities are now created for people to work more and earn more, so that they can not only live well, but also create higher added value.
M. Šiurkus points out that it is important to monitor the number of working pensioners as well. Currently, about 10-12 percent are working. all residents of retirement age.
“Retirement age, that 65 years, should not be a sentence. It all depends on healthy life expectancy, but people must be able to stay in the labor market, even if the nature of work changes,” he said.
However, here Lithuania lags behind other countries of the European Union, so in the opinion of the politician, it is still too early to talk about raising the retirement age, which is proposed by the International Monetary Fund.
However, it is noticeable that employers are more open to older workers, various trainings are offered to improve information technology or other skills, and opportunities are created to work with a more convenient or lighter schedule and workload.
According to him, it is currently particularly easy for people of retirement age to get a job in the public sector.
2024-08-18 12:40:46