The role of artificial intelligence in bridging the negative effects of an aging workforce on productivity

Debelak, Katja (avtor), Pevcin, Primož (avtor)

The age distribution of Europe’s workforce has shifted towards older workers over the past few decades, a process expected to accelerate in the years ahead. This demographic trend presents significant challenges to productivity and economic growth, particularly in the EU-27, where workforce aging is projected to reduce growth in total factor productivity. This paper studies the effect of workforce aging on productivity, identifies the main transmission channels, and examines policies that could mitigate its effects. The main research question is whether the utilization of artificial intelligence is offsetting the negative impact of workforce ageing on total factor productivity. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, including quantitative analysis of Eurostat labor market data and qualitative insights derived from interviews with managers. The results of the empirical analysis suggest that AI adoption positively affects productivity, even in the context of a demographic shift associated with ageing workforce. Findings also indicate that AI can partially offset the productivity decline by automating repetitive tasks, enabling older workers to focus on higher-value activities, and facilitating continuous learning through advanced training systems. Additionally, policies aimed at reskilling older workers, promoting intergenerational knowledge transfer, and investing in AI infrastructure could further ameliorate the effects of workforce aging. To sum up, the implications of the study are that artificial intelligence utilization contributes to productivity enhancements, therefore there is a need for introducing policies that promote its adoption, as well as reskilling and upskilling of workforce to be able to follow the trends.

• Jezik: Angleški jezik
• Ključne besede: ageing workforce, EU, artificial intelligence, total factor productivity
• Vrsta gradiva: Članek v reviji
• Tipologija: 1.01 - Izvirni znanstveni članek
• Organizacija: FU - Fakulteta za upravo
• Status publikacije: Objavljeno
• Različica publikacije: Objavljena publikacija
• Datum objave: 01.01.2025
• Leto izida: 2025
• Št. strani: Str. 287-302
• Številčenje: Vol. 28, no. 2
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-177369
• UDK: 331.5:331.101.32:004.8:304.4(4–6EU)
• ISSN pri članku: 1331-5609
• DOI: 10.2478/zireb-2025-0025
• COBISS.SI-ID: 260829955
• Datum objave v RUL: 22.12.2025

Gradivo je del revije

• Naslov: Zagreb international review of economics & business
• Skrajšan naslov: Zagreb int. rev. econ. bus.
• Založnik: Faculty of Economics and Business
• ISSN: 1331-5609
• COBISS.SI-ID: 5488156

Licence

• Licenca: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Priznanje avtorstva-Nekomercialno-Brez predelav 4.0 Mednarodna
• Povezava: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.sl
• Opis: Najbolj omejujoča licenca Creative Commons. Uporabniki lahko prenesejo in delijo delo v nekomercialne namene in ga ne smejo uporabiti za nobene druge namene.

Sekundarni jezik

• Jezik: Slovenski jezik
• Ključne besede: starejša delovna sila, EU, umetna inteligenca, skupna faktorska produktivnost

Projekti

• Financer: ARIS - Javna agencija za znanstvenoraziskovalno in inovacijsko dejavnost Republike Slovenije
• Številka projekta: P5-0093
• Naslov: Razvoj sistema učinkovite in uspešne javne uprave

• Financer: ARIS - Javna agencija za znanstvenoraziskovalno in inovacijsko dejavnost Republike Slovenije
• Naslov: Vpliv demografskih sprememb in umetne inteligence na trg dela v javnem sektorju