CYIL vol. 10 (2019)

VERONIKA BÍLKOVÁ CYIL 10 ȍ2019Ȏ contribute to combating the image of older persons as those who have nothing to offer to the society any more. The right to work “requires States parties to take appropriate steps to safeguard the right of everyone to the opportunity to gain a living by work which is freely chosen or accepted”. 85 Mandatory requirement age is not in itself a violation of the right to work, though the age limit has to be based on reasonable and objective criteria. 86 Older workers should enjoy the same working conditions as younger employees and States should seek to introduce retirement preparation programmes. They should also create pension schemes (contributory and non- contributory) to make sure that retirement will not make older persons slide into poverty. 3. Concluding Remarks Older persons constitute an important, and still growing, proportion of the world population. People aged 60 or over number nearly 1 billion, almost three times more than five decades ago. The number of older persons is expected to double by 2050, when it should reach 2 billion. 87 The rise is particularly steep in the countries of the third world where the population is ageing at three times the speed of the population in developed countries. 88 It is estimated that by mid-century, the age structure will be more or less similar in all regions, with older persons making up 20-30% of the population (see Figure 1). People, on average, live longer and that is certainly a positive development. This development however also yields certain challenges. Societies may have difficulties accommodating particular needs, interests, and preferences that older persons have, or are supposed to have. The lack of age-appropriate and age-sensitive care, services, support, and environment on the one hand and ageist attitudes based on prejudice and stereotypes on the other prevent older persons from making full use of their potential and from living their lives according to their wishes and expectations. Figure 1. Number of persons aged 60 years or over from 1980 to 2050 89

85 Ibidem , par. 22. 86 In UNHuman Rights bodies, mandatory retirement age has so far been usually considered under the prohibition of discrimination. See HRC, John K. Love et al. v Australia, op. cit. 87 UN, World Population Ageing, Highlights, New York: United Nations, 2017. 88 Population ageing in developing countries: burden or opportunity?, Factcard 4, London: IPPF, 2012. 89 UN, World Population Ageing, Highlights, op. cit., p. 4.

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