Vaupel James W, Loichinger Elke
Rostocker Zentrum for the Study of Demographic Change and Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Konrad-Zuse-Strasse 1, D-18057 Rostock, Germany.
Science. 2006 Jun 30;312(5782):1911-3. doi: 10.1126/science.1127487.
As Europe ages, the proportion of people who work will decline unless older individuals remain in the labor force. Such reform could be part of a more general redistribution of work. If a greater share of the population worked, then the average number of hours worked per week could be reduced. This could particularly help younger people and increase Europe's low birth rates. The challenges facing Germany, Europe's most populous country, are highlighted, but statistics are also given for five other European countries and, for comparison, the United States. Social science research is needed to provide policy-relevant knowledge about life-course options.
随着欧洲人口老龄化，除非老年人继续留在劳动力队伍中，否则工作人口的比例将会下降。这种改革可以成为更普遍的工作重新分配的一部分。如果有更大比例的人口参与工作，那么每周的平均工作时长就可以减少。这尤其有助于年轻人，并提高欧洲较低的出生率。文中强调了欧洲人口最多的国家德国所面临的挑战，但也给出了其他五个欧洲国家的统计数据，以及作为对比的美国的统计数据。需要进行社会科学研究，以提供与政策相关的关于人生历程选择的知识。
