The Australian Bureau of Statistics annual trends published last week presents a depressing trend many for middle-aged and elderly Australians. We should take note of the prospects and aim to do something about them.
The fact the population is ageing is well-known. The details that came out of the bureau’s 1999 Australian Social Trends, however, reveal more about the consequences of the ageing population. Thirty-two percent of people over the age of 65 live alone. And those people spent 79 per cent of their time alone. Elderly single women outstripped the number of me by almost two to one.
As the population ages, more people will be leading lonely lives, unless action is taken.
Added to this trend is the plight of the middle-aged unemployed. The bureau reveals that older job-seekers are less successful than younger ones. They are more likely to drop out of the workforce and less likely to get a job after as a result of a training course. And when the do find work is it more likely to be part-time or casual work.
Often, employment provides social connection for a lot of people. It means that many middle-aged people unsuccessfully seeking employment will, like so many of the elderly, be spending much time alone.
It may be that spending a lot of time alone is not such a bad thing. Many people in large family would welcome more time alone. Even so, it is likely that too much time alone has undesirable consequences. In light of the bureau’s figures, it would be a good idea to start investigating. Is being alone for long periods unhealthy, mentally or physically? Does it lead to unhappiness? Having done the investigation, we should then work out what, if anything, should be done. It would be a callous government that did nothing in light of this picture.
The bureau’s snapshot also revealed other trends with long-term social consequences.
The length of the working week is polarising. More people are working longer working weeks; more people are working shorter working weeks and the number working the standard is falling. That is bound to be causing unnecessary stress. Many working shorter weeks must be seeking full-time work. Many are working too much and would be better with more leisure, if only their working environment would permit it. It seems, though, that the economy of scale gained with fewer employees working longer is too attractive to employers, at least in the short-term. Every employee needs a worktop, which costs money. Every employee requires on-costs. It may make good micro-economics, but it is of little value if it is outweighed by greater social and economic costs to the community caused by lack of appropriate leisure and family time.
The bureau also revealed an increase in gambling. Once again, it could be the social consequences of broader economic policies. The tax base of the states has been squeezed to such an extent that they welcome gambling taxes. They promote gambling in order to get the revenue, whereas in the past they imposed the gambling taxes in order to discourage gambling.
But the news is not all gloomy. Australia is becoming more educated and more connected. Half of Australian homes have a computer and 20 per cent are on the internet.
The internet is not a panacea, nor a substitute for real human contact and conversation, but it has advantages over letter-writing — notably speed – and advantages over the telephone, notably cost, at least after the initial outlay.
The bureau’s work on collecting the data must be seen as an important first step, not a final step. the challenge is to act on the research to help reduce loneliness and make life happier and healthier.