Wednesday, August 19, 2026 | Edition 191 | Item #2

Specifically, the continued growth of older workers in the labor force. The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Standards shows that for ages 65–74, labor-force participation is expected to rise by 13% in the decade between 2023 and 2033. For those 75+, it is projected to rise by 21.7%.  That means that workers over 65 will be a larger, though still modest, portion of the labor force: people 65–74 represented 2.6% of the labor force in 2003, 5.5% in 2023, and are projected to reach 6.5% in 2033. The 75+ share is projected to more than double from 0.6% in 2003 to 2.1% in 2033. 

And that is a good and necessary development, because the US is running out of “working age” labor force growth.  From 2025 to 2064, due to declining birth rates and restrictive immigration practices, the number of people age 18 – 64 in the US is expected to grow only from 203 million to 212 million, a mere 4% growth at a time when the population 65+ will grow by 44%.  Even those numbers obscure the demographic change since all the growth is in the age 45 – 64 segment and the population age 18 – 44 is now projected to decline from 122 million to 117 million.  We will need far more older workers if we are to have a shot at economic growth in mid-century America.