Reversing ageism and extending working lives: the Finland model

<ns3:p>Introduction: In response to increasing longevity, many countries are seeking to extend the working lives of their populations. Often, the aim is to increase the employment of older workers. This requires tackling different forms of ageism in the labour market and social security. This article describes how Finland managed this shift which started in the mid-90s when Finland was exiting a deep recession. Older people faced iscrimination, and social security was becoming financially unsustainable in the long run. A holistic reform of public policy was initiated. The root cause for the unsustainability was ageism. The reforms resulted in better inclusion of people over 50 in various forms of employment and lifelong learning.Purpose: In the space of thirty years, Finland has moved from being a country of early retirees to a country of later retirement. This shift required a profound change in the way workers, employers and the whole society perceived employment of older people. We review the major national initiatives and reforms in Finland since 1990s aimed at extending the working careers of older workers. A major guideline was to promote the work ability of older workers and to understand their experience as an asset. The pension reforms that were implemented are also presented briefly. The article compiles analyses of these changes and discusses their impact.Materials and methods: The author examines relevant policy and legislative changes to understand what the Finnish society did. The author carefully describes the most important parts of the reforms and policy initiatives. The author analyses relevant research articles and policy papers to study the impact and the ideological shift of different policy changes. The article is a case study focussing on Finland.Results: The effective retirement age in Finland has steadily increased since the early 90s. Compared to 1993, the employment rate for the 60–65 age group had increased by 44 percentage points in 2023. The change is explained by successful pension reforms, demographic shift and educational effects.</ns3:p>