<b>Insights from Scotland’s Census: Work Patterns in Later Life.</b> A NISRIE report

<p dir="ltr">This report is a deliverable within the Novel Insights on Scotland’s Rural and Island Economies (NISRIE) project as part of the Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture strategic research programme 2022-27. This report aims to provide insights into the levels of economic activity in Scotland’s 65 years old and over population, the type of activity and the sectors they are engaged in. </p><p dir="ltr"><b>What were we trying to find out?</b></p><p dir="ltr">The research explores the recent 2022 population census alongside data from the 2011 and 2001 census to ascertain if patterns of economic activity in this age group have changed as a result of changing pension ages, life expectancy and general societal change. The research focuses on assessing the spatial and sectoral dimensions of economic activity in the older population, particularly in island and very remote mainland areas, where previous NISRIE research has highlighted differences. </p><p dir="ltr"><b>What did we do?</b></p><p dir="ltr">The analysis used data from Scotland’s Census. Cross-tabulations of population characteristics, specific sex, age, economic activity and sector of employment were extracted and compared to previous census (2001 and 2011) data to ascertain changes in the older population</p><p dir="ltr"><b>What did we learn?</b></p><ul><li>Scotland’s aged 65 and over (65+) population is continuing to increase over recent decades, particularly in rural and island areas. </li><li>Analysis of the 2022 Census points to these areas having some of the highest rates of economic activity in the 65+ population. Economic activity rates ranged from 9% in urban areas to 16% within island populations. In some rural places, up to 28% of the 65+ population were economically active. </li><li>Self-employment past the age of 65 was particularly high in parts of rural and island Scotland, with this group being much more likely to be self-employed than any other age group: Nationally 31% of economically active people 65+ were self-employed compared with 16% for people aged 50-64. </li><li>55% of 65+ people were working 31 or more hours a week, with those working in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AFF) working the longest hours. Nearly 50% of self-employed people and 24% of employees in AFF worked 49 or more hours per week. </li><li>The active old-age dependency ratio (the ratio of the 65+ population over the economically active working age population) was highest in island and remote rural parts of Scotland, but this reduced slightly when taking into account people still working aged 65 and over. </li></ul><p dir="ltr"><br></p>