July 31, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Projected growth in labor force participation of seniors, 2006-2016

The number of workers between the ages of 65 and 74 is predicted to soar by 83.4 percent between 2006 and 2016.

[Chart data—TXT]

Similarly, the number of workers aged 75 and up is predicted to grow by 84.3 percent.

Looking at other age groups, the number of workers in the youngest group, age 16-24, is projected to decline during the period while the number of workers age 25-54 will rise only slightly. The number of workers age 55-64 is expected to climb by 36.5 percent. The total labor force is projected to increase by 8.5 percent during the period 2006-2016.

By 2016, workers age 65 and over are expected to account for 6.1 percent of the total labor force, up sharply from their 2006 share of 3.6 percent.

These data are from the Employment Projections program. To learn more, see "Older Workers," BLS Spotlight on Statistics, July 2008.

Related TED article:

• Labor force participation of seniors, 1948-2007