Rough estimates suggest a further 2.7m jobs will be created in the UK by 2030. However, at the same time, the UK workforce is ageing rapidly, resulting in fewer people of working age to support an ageing economy.

Although employment rates at older ages are on the rise thanks to government policies such as the scrapping of the default retirement age, there is a risk that the availability of older workers could be greatly diminished by poor health, part-time working, and skill shortages.

This presentation explores whether there will be enough workers to fill these positions. According to our research, the UK economy could see a shortfall of 2.6 million workers by 2030 – almost twice the workforce of the NHS.

To plug this gap, we call on Government to introduce a comprehensive Workforce Strategy looking at:

• How to support people to stay in the workforce for longer, e.g. by supporting healthy workplaces, supporting carers and creating flexible conditions that suit people’s needs.
• How to remove barriers to returning to work; e.g. following time out caring, dealing with a health need or taking parental leave.
• The role of migration and automation in addressing workforce gaps