The ageing workforce: Australian policies in an historical context

Based on an historical analysis of political policies and welfare systems, the paper suggests that ageing policy in Australia has been generally shaped by an orientation towards economic rationalism and the socio-political contexts of older workers. Longstanding perceptions related to age no longer reflect the realities of an ageing workforce; thus the future capacity of a nation to manage its future labour is at stake. Socio-political transformations in the past have demonstrated that the key political players in Australia have been shifting their agendas for economic-political convenience, which can only suggest an ambgiuous future for older workers.