UK leads Europe in resilience to ageing workforce & automation
The United Kingdom has been identified as the country best positioned in Europe to withstand the pressures of an aging population and increased job automation. Switzerland and Iceland also score highly for resilience. These findings come as demographic shifts and technological advances are set to transform European labour markets over the next three decades.
Labour market risk
The research assessed European countries across seven indicators, including digital skills, innovation capacity, human development, and projected workforce changes up to 2050. Resilience was defined as the ability to maintain economic stability as populations age and automation risks rise.
The UK holds the continent's lowest risk of job displacement by automation, with only 30% of the workforce considered vulnerable. By contrast, in some other European countries, up to 75% of roles are judged to be at risk from AI and automation. Switzerland, meanwhile, leads in human development and also ranks at the top for attracting qualified specialists, while Iceland demonstrates near-universal digital competency among its residents.
Workforce projections
Across developed European nations, the working-age population is expected to contract by an average of 7% over the next 25 years. The UK's decline is projected at a relatively modest 3%, giving it more time to adapt than many of its neighbours. Britain also maintains an old-age dependency ratio of 30%, meaning there are three workers for every retiree. This ratio is considered manageable compared with several other European states.
In Switzerland, the working-age population is forecast to fall by just over 8% but the risk of automation remains low, at 33% of jobs. Iceland's working population is also stable, and 99% of Icelanders demonstrate high-level computer skills, the best rate across Europe. The country's old-age dependency is only 23%.
Digital skills strength
Iceland's near-universal digital proficiency positions it to shift towards technology-driven employment as automation impacts other sectors. The UK and Denmark also stand out, with 75% of their working-age populations classified as having strong digital skills.
Slovakia ranks sixth for overall resilience, with just 47% of jobs facing the risk of automation and an old-age dependency ratio of 27%. About one-third of Slovakians report strong digital competency. Luxembourg, scoring highly for talent competitiveness, has 68% of jobs seen at risk from AI but benefits from relatively high innovation and talent attraction capacities.
Economic adaptation
Spain, Denmark, Norway and Austria complete the top ten. While in these countries the percentage of jobs at high risk from automation ranges from 56% (Denmark) to above 73% (Norway and Austria), high scores in human development and availability of digital skills help offset the risks.
Spain's population is well prepared for transitions, with half of citizens having strong computer skills despite a high job automation risk. Austria and Norway maintain competitive advantages through high levels of education and established economic institutions, as reflected in their human development indices.
Automation impact
"Up to 20% of European workers already express fear that AI will take their jobs," said Ani Mkrtchyan, Chief Sales Officer, Digitain. "But Europe's welfare systems give the continent an advantage here. Strong unemployment benefits and retraining programs mean people can transition to new work without falling into poverty. This matters because AI isn't just a threat: economists estimate it could add USD $2.6 trillion to European GDP by 2030. Some experts even think that due to Europe's aging workforce, the continent needs automation to maintain productivity as fewer young people enter the job market."
