A new PwC global report has found that harnessing the power of an older workforce could deliver gains of up to $78 billion for the Australian economy.

The report finds that if Australia’s employment rates for older workers aged 55+ was increased to those in Sweden (74% of those aged 55-64 employed), Australia’s GDP could be around 4.7% higher.

83% of this potential economic benefit would be achieved by improved employment of 55-64 year olds, with the remaining 17% attributable to those aged 65 and older.

The results are drawn from PwC’s ‘Golden Age Index’ which has been developed to assess the extent to which older people remain active members of the labour force. It captures a broad range of indicators, including employment earnings and training, that reflect the labour market impact of workers aged over 55 in 34 OECD countries.  

Overall, Australia was ranked 16th of the 34 OECD countries, with the nordic region leading the way with Iceland first, Sweden third, Norway sixth and Denmark and Finland in the top 15. New Zealand has been one of the biggest movers going from ninth to second and finished first in the Asia Pacific region.