Italy, short working life: 33 years, only Romania worse

Italy is one of the European countries in which people live the longest, but also one of those in which they spend the fewest years in the job market. In 2025 the expected duration of working life stops at 33 years, the second lowest value in the European Union after Romania and four and a half years less than the EU average, equal to 37.5 years. This was noted by the Cna, explaining that the improvement compared to 2024 is minimal: just over two months, compared to an increase of three months recorded in the European average. Last year the Italian indicator was in fact equal to 32.8 years, while that of the Union stood at 37.2. The distance from the main European economies remains very large, explains Cna. The expected duration of working life reaches 40.2 years in Germany, 37.5 in France and 36.8 in Spain. In the Netherlands it even reaches 44 years: eleven more than in Italy. The most critical data concerns women, the Cna finds: in Italy the expected duration of their working life is just 28.4 years, compared to 35.4 on the European average. The gap between men and women reaches 8.9 years, the highest in the Union. A result consistent with a female employment rate stuck at 58%, almost thirteen points below the EU average, and with the widest gender employment gap between member states. The indicator does not measure retirement age or the number of years actually worked by those in continuous employment, explains the CNA: it estimates the years that a 15-year-old person can expect to spend in the workforce, whether employed or unemployed, based on current demographic conditions and participation levels. The Italian result - observes the Cna - therefore reflects above all the late entry of young people, discontinuous careers and low female participation.