Many European nations are increasing retirement ages, and the average length of working life is also rising.
The issue has provoked widespread protests across Europe in recent years, notably in France in 2023 when then‑Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne proposed raising the retirement age from 62 to 64.
Although the legislation passed parliament, the National Assembly delayed its implementation until 2028, after the upcoming presidential election, to prevent further governmental instability.
In Romania, the government will raise women’s retirement age from 63 to 65 by 2035 to align with men’s retirement age, as part of broader pension reforms. It is also gradually increasing the retirement age for judges and prosecutors to 65, despite the fact that they can currently retire in their late 40s depending on their service length.
Denmark has enacted legislation to raise the state pension age to 70 by 2040, linking it to rising life expectancy and positioning it among the highest retirement ages in Europe.
Concurrently, the average expected working life across the EU has been increasing.
Eurostat reports that the average expected working life for people aged 15 and over in the EU reached 37.5 years in 2025, up from 37.2 years in 2024 and 35.2 years in 2016.
The indicator estimates the number of years a 15‑year‑old can expect to spend in the labour force under current conditions, encompassing both employment and unemployment, and does not represent a prescribed working duration or retirement age.
Nevertheless, significant disparities exist among EU member states, reflecting a discernible north‑south divide.
In seven EU countries, workers are expected to remain in employment for 40 years or more: the Netherlands (44 years), Sweden (43.3), Denmark (42.6), Estonia (41.5), Ireland (40.7), Germany (40.2) and Finland (40.1).
Conversely, Romania (32.7 years), Italy (33 years) and Bulgaria (34.6 years) have the shortest average working lives.
Contrasting Expected Working Lives of Dutch Men and Italian Women
A clear gender gap persists: men are expected to work about four years longer than women on average across the EU (39.5 years for men versus 35.4 years for women).
Men in the Netherlands (45.9 years), Sweden (44.5), Denmark (44.5) and Ireland (43.4) enjoy the longest expected working careers, while the shortest expected working lives for men are found in Bulgaria (35.9 years), Romania (36.0) and Croatia (36.3).
Women achieve the longest expected working lives in Sweden (42.3 years), the Netherlands (41.9) and Estonia (41.8), whereas the shortest expected working lives for women are in Italy (28.4 years), Romania (29.1) and Greece (31.8).
Eurostat clarifies that these figures reflect observed labour market participation patterns and do not indicate legal retirement ages, policy targets, or mandatory work periods.
EU countries are confronting broad demographic challenges, including increasing life expectancy and declining birth rates.
In response, governments are increasingly adopting unpopular measures such as raising retirement ages, limiting early retirement options and increasing pension contributions to alleviate pressure on social and healthcare systems.