5. Economic and employment significance of workers in long-term care OECD 2006 estimates of LTC workers Projections: OECD LTC expenditure: 1% of GDP in 2005 to 2%-4% by 2050 EU population aged 80+: 5% in 2010 to 8% in 2030 to 12% in 2050 European Commission estimates: Shortage of 2m LTC workers by 2020 Not known 1.2m 100,000 Netherlands 800,000 4m 125,000 Italy 500,000 2.7m 11,000 Spain Family assistance Informal Formal