Holy See: Elderly People Deserve Equal Protections and Labour Rights

Geneva, September 18, 2025 — The Holy See has renewed its call for societies worldwide to value, protect, and care for elderly people, urging governments to ensure equal rights, social protections, and intergenerational solidarity.

Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, the Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the United Nations in Geneva, addressed the 60th regular session of the Human Rights Council on Wednesday. He warned that societies remain unprepared to deal with looming demographic changes, noting that by 2030 one in six people will be aged 60 or over, totalling 1.4 billion globally—a figure expected to double by 2050.

“This demographic shift is also a moral test of how societies value and care for their elders,” Archbishop Balestrero said. He stressed that the fragility and dignity of older persons must be upheld through practical measures safeguarding their economic and social well-being.

He underlined that the worth of human beings does not diminish with age or physical decline. “A person’s worth cannot be defined by youth, efficiency, physical vigour, or perfect health, because it lies in the unchanging truth that each person is created in the image and likeness of God, a fact that cannot be erased by time itself,” he affirmed.

The Archbishop criticised what he described as “throw-away” policies that portray the elderly as a burden, including legislation promoting euthanasia and assisted suicide. Such measures, he warned, encourage “a culture of death” rather than respect and support for older generations.

Balestrero urged nations to provide pensions, cash benefits, and adequate health and social care services. He argued that when older people remain in the workforce out of necessity, they must be given protection against labour market discrimination.

“They are denied the rest they deserve and the opportunity to pass on their wisdom and advice to the younger generations, enabling them to face the future with hope and responsibility,” he noted.

He highlighted the particular vulnerability of women in old age, insisting that they must have equitable access to social protections and pensions.

Concluding his address, the Archbishop called for stronger intergenerational solidarity to preserve robust social security systems, especially those supporting families. “The Holy See calls for greater investment in social protection policies that support families, in order to strengthen and safeguard the family as the enduring foundation of human society,” he said.

Courtesy: Vatican News

Download Catholic Connect App for Daily News Updates: 

Android: Click here to download

iOS: Click here to download