Older men bounce back: the re-emergence of older male workers

Over the past five years, the labour force participation rate of older Australian men has risen after declining for over 25 years. In combination with ongoing increases in older women’s participation, the participation rate of older persons is now at its highest level on record. We describe some of the trends in older persons’ participation with a focus on older men and discuss some possible reasons why older men’s participation has reversed its long decline. We find that improved labour market conditions for older workers is the most likely explanation for the recent increase in participation but that the increase is supported by long-lived improvements in health and education.