Two in every hundred Brazilians over the age of 60 who are looking for employment cannot find it. The elderly population is experiencing full employment - the total of employed persons in this group increased by almost 7% between 2012 and 2013. For Fernando de Holanda Barbosa Filho, researcher in the field of Applied Economics of the Brazilian Institute of Economics (FGV/IBRE), this is explained by the level of professional qualification.

The issue is that older people who cannot find employment, that is, not qualified, chooses to remain retired. In other words, those who are still in the market are the best, with more contacts and more qualifications - which means that they will find jobs easier, says Fernando.

The economist also points out that the elderly who are active in the labor market seek to ensure full retirement, as well as maintain their standard of living after their active years. He points out that the incidence of the social security factor - which changed the retirement rule and started penalizing those who retire earlier - is also one of the factors that explains the permanence in the labor market. Given the social security factor and high life expectancy, older workers need to spend more time in the labor market to maintain their standard of living in old age. The trend is that people will eventually work longer, he explained.

For the researcher, given the current scenario, it is very positive that the elderly stay longer in the labor market. If we look at the resources generated for society, and the moment we are currently in, with little available labor and the slow growth of the economically active population, spending more time in the labor market is a good idea, he said.