Trend Ageing of Korea's workforce around the baby-boom generation

Summary

The report sees Korea's labour force ageing quickly as the baby-boom generation moves into older age. The share of prime working-age people aged 30 to 59, once more than half of the working-age population, falls steeply while the share aged 70 and over rises markedly. Baby boomers are a very large cohort with a strong tendency to participate in the labour market, so whether they keep working largely determines the size of older labour supply. Once they retire fully, however, the report expects the decline in the economically active population to widen as ageing accelerates further. The trend therefore offers temporary relief through older workers' participation but ultimately deepens the supply squeeze.