Slovenia's Unsustainable Retiree Burden on its Shrinking Workforce


 
Decades of low fertility are causing Slovenia’s working-age population to fall. Simultaneously, retirees are living longer and forming an ever-larger part of the population. These factors are causing an extraordinary decline in the number of working-age people available to support the expanding number of retirees.

Number of Working-Age People to each Dependent (65+) in Slovenia
The working-age population represents those aged 15 to 64. Period: 1950-2050.
Slovenia



Note: Y axis ratios are expressed as “X : 1,” meaning X working people to every 1 elderly dependent.

In 1950, each Slovenian retiree was supported by nearly 8.6 people of working age. By 2050, this is projected to have fallen to 1.7 – the fifth lowest ratio in Europe. Furthermore, the fast-expanding 65+, mostly-retired cohort cost Governments of rich countries more than the equivalent number of workers, due to unfunded pension, medical and old-age-care costs (3 time seems a minimum). Unfunded pension entitlements also stood at 387% of Slovenia’s GDP in the most recent Eurostat survey. Adding to this already nightmarish equation is the fact that Slovenia’s labour force participation rate is 58%. Therefore, these figures overstate the number of workers available to support retirees today. Consequently, an unprecedented and unsustainable tax burden is emerging in Slovenia.

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