Austerity and precarity: individual and collective agency in later life

Abstract

The chapter examines both the context for the rise of precarity in the lives of older people as well as responses and alternative areas of practice. The chapter reviews the link between precarity and changes in the welfare state and austerity policies imposed by governments in the Global North. These developments are linked to the influence of neo-liberal policies with their emphasis on individual responsibility for managing transitions through the life course. The chapter then considers the basis for ‘collective’ forms of agency, underpinned by a recognition of issues concerning the provision of universal basic services, substantive equality and collective engagement on the part of older people.