(Source: Internet)

Retirement age and rights to work and rest

Like many countries, in Vietnam, the rights to work and have a rest are highlighted and protected in the Constitution and legal regulations on labour which stipulate that workers have the right to go to work and be free to choose jobs, undertake vocational training to improve skills and protected from discrimination.                                           

The right to work means that workers are entitled to go to work depending on their health and ability without age restriction. Today, a number of workers in retirement age still join workforce, including experts, scientists, doctors and teachers. In other words, they still exercise their right to work after retirement.

The right to rest is applied for those who fulfilled their job mission till retirement age or are unable to work and do not have demand for work. On gender equality aspect, both men and women have the right to retire at the same age. The proposal to increase the retirement age stems from the reality that many labourers are still able to work and wish to devote themselves to their work although they reach retirement ages. The most important thing is that the State must devise a suitable roadmap for both men and women to retire at the same age and women are enabled to choose an earlier retirement age than that of men.

Working age increase helps reduce population aging impacts on social security fund

Vietnam’s population is rapidly ageing. Statistics showed that the rate of people aged above 60 was 9.5 percent in 2008 and rose to 10.5 percent in 2014, pushing Vietnam into the “aging” stage as defined by the United Nations Development Programme. It is forecast that the rate of senior citizens will account for 12.4 percent of the country’s population by 2020, 15.8 percent by 2030 and 20.8 percent by 2040, leading to a decrease in revenue to the Social Security Fund and an increase in its spending without timely policy adjustments and State support.

Lessons from several countries showed that in order to keep the Social Security Fund balanced, one of the most important measures is to raise the retirement age, which is also proposed by State management agencies as well as experts at home and abroad. In fact, the ratio of social security fund payee to pensioner is increasingly falling. The average retirement age in Vietnam is lower than many other countries, at 55.61 years old for men and 52.56 years old for women on average calculated in 2012. Meanwhile, many people retired ahead of schedule, accounting for more than 50 percent.

By the end of 2012, the fund’s balance neared 250 trillion VND and revenue to the fund is predicted to equal spending by 2023. Unless changes are made, the Social Security Fund will be unable to pay beneficiaries by 2040. 

Working age increase and workers’ health

Several opinions said higher retirement age will cause difficulties to workers, especially manual ones. It is not completely true because Vietnam’s average expectancy has been higher than years ago, meaning that their health has been better. Many retirees become healthier when they continue working as compared to their fellows who stop working.

In Vietnam, more than 40 percent of the elderly are still working, while half of people aged 60-64 are also working. Many people just stop working after they reach 74 years old. The number of workers aged above 55 is growing. 

This shows that increasing working age for both men and women will not affect the large number of workers. For manual workers and those working in hazardous environments, the current law has a regulation on shortening working time for them. Therefore, it is surely that the draft revised Law on Employment will not mention working age increase for these people.

People who need early retirement and those who need working age increase

In any country, when it comes to building a policy of raising working age before retirement, interests of workers, the State and the entire society must be taken into consideration. In fact, many women aged above 55 and men aged above 60 have sufficient experience and ability to contribute to specific jobs. Therefore, the State should outline proper policies to fully tap such workforce.

At present, there are regulations prolonging the working age for scientific researchers and lecturers. Accordingly, the retirement age of an associate professor is 67 for men and 62 for women while male and female professors can retire at 70 and 65, respectively.  

Meanwhile, scientists involving in management retire at 60 for men and 55 for women. After such ages, they could only focus on professional work. For women with deputy-ministerial level or equivalent, retirement age will be 60, equaling their male fellows. Recently, the State issued regulations for public security sector, stipulating that professors and associate professors involving in management have retirement age extended. Those working in toxic and hazardous environments and armed forces are exempt from the regulations. 

Retirement age of Vietnamese in comparison with that of world people

A research statistics showed that there are big gaps in retirement age in several ASEAN countries and the world. In Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, both men and women retire at 55 while in Singapore, the retirement age is 62 for both sexes. The respective figures for the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Germany are 60, 60 and 67. In China, the retirement age is 60 for men and 50-60 for women.

The rapid population requires Vietnam to better use human resources and soon have appropriate policies to encourage capable old people to continue working for national development. Vietnam should consider retirement policies of foreign countries to find the best model for itself.

From the above aspects, it is necessary to increase the retirement age to ensure the feasibility of laws and policies. Accordingly, workers should be classified into different groups to ensure that laws are applicable to them, including management officials and workers in hazardous, dangerous and high-tech environments.

The impacts on the rights and interests of workers, job opportunities for young people, the use of the elderly’s working experience, gender equality and social fairness and other interests should also been considered when raising the retirement age.

International Cooperation Department