After more than 70 years, the Chinese Government has now passed a bill to raise the retirement age of its citizens to above 50 years.
BBC reports that women who work blue-collar jobs are now required to retire at 55 instead of 50, while those who work white-collar jobs are now required to retire at 58 instead of 55. The men who previously enjoyed retirement at age 60 are now seeing it increase to 63.
This new legislation will be effective as from January 1, 2025. According to the state news agency Xinhua, the government plans to slowly increase the retirement age over the next 15 years. Once the new rules are in place, Chinese workers won’t be allowed to retire early, but they can choose to work up to three extra years if they wish.
It is reported that these changes are driven by serious concerns about China’s future. The country’s population is getting older, and there are worries that the pension fund could run dry in the next 11 years. The Ministry of Civil Affairs recently released a report which showed that the elderly makeup more than 20% of the general population as of last year. It is also believed that this percentage will keep increasing in the years to come.
Even though the Chinese media outlet reports that the government had carefully considered factors like life expectancy and education levels when they made the decision, not everyone is happy with it.
Looking at the comments from Chinese social platforms such as Weibo, it’s evident that some users are concerned about the possibility of having to work for years while potentially experiencing a reduction in pay. The latest proposed pension system, expected to begin by 2030, mandates significant contributions from workers to the social security system in order to be eligible for a pension.
Other users see it as an inevitable change, pointing out that many European countries already have higher retirement ages. China’s retirement age is one of the lowest in the world, especially among major economies.