The public finance effects of ageing, a development all OECD countries are facing, will be tempered
if a higher proportion of the working-age population actually works. People cannot – and indeed should
not – be obliged to choose work over leisure. However, just-released OECD studies show that government
policies are keeping out of the labour force people who are capable of working, and often willing to do so –
in particular women and older workers.