A report prepared by the Research Office of the Italian General Council of Artisans and Small Businesses (CGIA) shows, based on the latest data analyzed, that in 2024, the average age of Italian employees in the private sector reached almost 42 years.

This represents a significant increase of four years compared to the average age of the workforce in 2008, when it stood at just under 38, the analysis points out, adding that today, one in three workers in Italy is over fifty years old.

The generational shift in the labor market has stalled in this European nation, laments this report, which considers the problem not only demographic but primarily economic.

In recent years, the capacity for young people to replace retiring workers in sufficient numbers has decreased, creating an imbalance that represents a structural limitation to growth, with a high operational risk.

Aging impacts innovation, as companies with a high average age tend to adopt new technologies and organizational models more slowly, while without a structured generational transition, achievements attained over decades of hard work are lost in just a few years.

Furthermore, digitalization is progressing unevenly, automation is being postponed, and integration into the most advanced supply chains is weakening, add the CGIA experts.

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