THE first programs to keep seniors in the workforce look likely to coincide with the release of the latest intergenerational report on Monday.

It is believed up to $50 million could be set aside to help keep seniors working, with the money possibly going into employment pilot programs.

The Government is also believed to be considering giving employers financial incentives to take on older workers.

Sources said some of the funds might go into research to understand the full extent of the ageing phenomenon.

The long-awaited report is tipped to indicate that the nation has, over the past decade, begun facing down the financial threats of an ageing population.

In 2002, the first intergenerational report revealed Australia faced a grim future because of the cost of caring for the aged, combined with a loss of productivity.

The increase in the tax burden alone was predicted to approach $90 billion by 2042.

But Treasurer Wayne Swan, who is expected to deliver the latest intergenerational report on Monday, has taken heart from a slight increase in the birth rate (from 1.6 babies a woman to 1.7).

… National Seniors said employers needed to be given more incentives to retain and hire older workers.