In Italy, about four out of every 10 workers are beyond the age of fifty. Employment in this age group totals 9.564 million, accounting for approximately 39% of the total workforce, with consistent growth over the last two decades (with a brief interruption in 2020 due to the pandemic): from 42% in 2004 to 68% in the second quarter of 2026, an increase of 327,000 people in employment in the latter period. This is according to the latest CNEL (National Council of the Italian National Institute of Statistics) Labor Market Bulletin, which was developed in partnership with ISTAT. This expansion is not random, but rather reflects demographic changes, particularly the population's progressive aging, regulatory changes in social security, and the gradual increase in education levels, which has delayed entry into and, consequently, exit from the labor market. "The combined effect of these factors", the Bulletin notes, "has made workers over 50 an increasingly important component of the labor market. The observed growth is thus not a recent phenomena, but rather part of a long-term shift in labor participation among older people". The majority of people over the age of 50 work as employees, with many having solid, permanent employment: out of 7.3 million employees, around 6.7 million have permanent contracts.