Facing the contrasting challenges of ageing: Maximising paid employment and informal care in a changing society

Population ageing challenges the welfare state in two important ways. First, the financial sustainability of the social system, both in terms of pension and health care expenses, comes under pressure due to the rising amount of pensioners, and especially those aged 80+. Second, it also brings about a care void due to the explosive growth in the demand of care. Even though an increase in the supply professional care can cover part of this growing demand, estimations suggest that a similar growth in professional care supply will be difficult to attain due to limitations in budget and skilled labour supply. Consequently, the same societal process of ageing brings forth two seemingly contradictory demands for the population on active age: an increase in (female) labour market participation rates to grant financial sustainability; and an augmentation of informal care for the elderly in order to meet the care demand. In this PhD, we try to find which policies lead to an optimal balance between both demands of ageing.