The demographic issue

These figures are partly influenced by the demographic crisis gripping Italy – and, to some extent, all the other major EU countries. The issue takes on particular significance in a country that is ageing rapidly. By 2025, the median age of the Italian population had reached 49.1 years, compared with the EU average of 44.9. The population aged 15–24, which stood at nearly 9 million forty years ago, fell below 6 million in 2024, and its share of the working-age population has fallen from 24 per cent to 15 per cent. Demographic ageing is increasing the pressure on the working-age population. As at 1 January 2025, people aged over 65 accounted for 24.7 per cent of the population in Italia, compared with 63.4 per cent for those aged 15–64, equivalent to around 39 older people for every 100 people of working age. In this context, facilitating and accelerating young people’s entry into employment is of not only social but also economic importance. Generational turnover in the Italian labour market is increasingly unbalanced. In 2025, for every 100 employed people aged 55–64, there were just 29 employed young people aged 15–24, down from around 34 in 2019. This is also due to the growth in employment in recent years, which has mainly affected the over-50s, whilst the number of young people in work has fallen.