Has Britain got a problem with old age? In US boardrooms the average age is approaching 57, in Britain it is 44. Sixteen per cent of retirement-age Americans are in work, compared with 11 per cent in Britain. In Britain, anyone over 50 has a hard time finding employment. Age Concern says that age discrimination is the single biggest form of discrimination in the UK. Its surveys reveal that one third of Britons believe the over 70s to be "incompetent and incapable". What can we learn from America about getting older people into work? Or is the truth that retired Americans are forced to work because of inadequate pension provision? Should we be trying to find ways to protect people's right to retire?
The Telegraph