Still putting in: measuring the economic and social contributions of older Australians

Abstract

In a recently released policy statement, AdvantAGE Australia, National Seniors Australia (2008) acknowledged the huge beneficial contributions that older people have made to Australian society. National Seniors Australia (NSA) commissioned Eidos Institute to undertake this study to find out more about the extent of these contributions and the factors that influence these contributions. The key outcome of this study is a framework or ‘Chart of Accounts’ that allows users to a) track the participation of older Australians in paid and unpaid work; and b) estimate the value of economic and social contributions by older Australians as well as the value of losses for not utilising the knowledge and skills that older Australians have built up over a lifetime. Users can also make predictions of future contributions and participation in paid and unpaid work by using existing data as the baseline.