The new life-curve

Abstract

The ageing of the population in general — and the working population in particular — is a phenomenon observable in all countries of the European Union. The question of the role played by the older employees in a company — and in society — is going to become increasingly important. Patterns are changing so quickly that a rethink of the relationship between working and non-working life for older employees is called for. At present, society and social security systems still assume that full-time employment lasts for 35–45 years and involves steadily increasing income expectations — and that 63 or 65 could once again become the normal age of retirement.

Traditional social security systems are becoming increasingly inappropriate, as variable forms of employment and new career structures develop. Now Volkswagen has come up with a new approach which enables an employee to draw on his lifetime’s income and working time to provide cover for old age and the transition to retirement. A redrawing of the relationship between the individual and the company has resulted in a broad range of new possibilities — transfer of expertise, progressive work reduction programmes, variable or virtual models of employment, application of the acceptability carve, and participatory pension programmes.