The messages that the State will not be able to assume the expense of pensions for the elderly, with the arrival of more than 14 million baby boomers at retirement age, do not penetrate the youth. Young Spaniards (between 18 and 34 years old) are the citizens of the Mediterranean area who least perceive the aging of the population as something threatening for their future. The fact that in the near future the weight of the population over 65 years of age will be the highest in history (in 2040, almost 25% of the population) does not worry them excessively, on the contrary, they see it as a job opportunity.
“Young people believe that the retirement of the baby boomers will benefit them in the labor market,” says David Henneberger, director of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), an entity that, together with EsadeEcPol, has just published the study Mediterranean youth versus to the challenges of the permanent crisis.
The same does not happen, curiously, with automation and digitalization. For citizens between 18 and 34 years old, the increased presence of robots or other increasingly complex and self-sufficient automated systems in the production of goods and services “could be a potentially important issue in the future.”
The report, presented on Tuesday by its authors, Ignacio Jurado (Carlos III University of Madrid) and Jorge Galindo (deputy director of EsadeEcPol), reveals that, while young people recognize that their present is not good, they nevertheless see their future near (5 years) and more distant (between a decade and two) optimistically. “There is a pessimistic perspective on the situation, but with optimistic future prospects. The bad thing is if those expectations are not met,” Galindo said.
According to this work, at this time, only 30% of young people consider themselves capable of facing economic emergencies, while 40% have difficulties saving in the short term: emancipation from the family home is notably late; 26.5% of young Spaniards between 30 and 34 years old still live with their parents. The average age of emancipation in Spain is 28 years.
Renting is the most common form of housing. Around 31% live on rent. And of the minority that owns a home, 65% got it with the help of a family member.
And in five years or ten? 62.4% believe that their spending capacity will be good or very good. Also their ability to save (54.5%). “However, this panorama is not so idyllic. Behind these figures hide notable gaps that differ, for example, depending on the educational level of young people,” the report states. Of young Spaniards with university studies, only 11.8% believe that their ability to cover essential expenses in five years will be low or very low. However, this percentage rises to 29.3% among those who have only completed secondary school.
The disparity also manifests itself in the long-term savings capacity. Among young people with greater educational training, 57.4% trust that they will have a good savings capacity in five years and only 15.2% believe the opposite.
Another aspect of evaluating young people’s personal prospects is to consider their expectations for social mobility, the report notes. The tendency is to see your home as middle class.
