Raising retirement age
Thursday, 21 October 2010
Tanya Haque
THROUGH an ordinance promulgated by the President, the retirement age of workers engaged in public sector industries from has been 57 years to 60 years. People in the country are living longer and remaining also fitter in many cases compared to the past. This could be an argument for extending the retirement age. Besides, such a step would be welcome to those who wish to retire late in the hope of continuing earnings and to be at work places rather than at homes where they could feel boredom from not having work to do. At any rate, the move to enhance the retirement age will be popular among its beneficiaries.
No precise figures are available for the number of workers who reach retirement age every year in the public sector industries and services in Bangladesh. But even if 10 per cent of them became eligible for retirement, then that would be a number in the neighbourhood of several hundred thousands. This means that from increasing their retirement age for three years, the employment prospects of a similar number of young ones would remain postponed for the same length of time.
But unemployment, specially of young people or the first time potential entrants in the job market, is a huge problem in Bangladesh. This problem would not be helped any but only added to as a result of increasing the retirement age.
The retired persons can fall back on the income or saved amounts of liquid or fixed assets they acquire over time. Besides, they also get a reasonably good one-time terminal benefits and even pensions. The pensioners are also progressively getting payments at better rates these days. In sum, they do not generally fall into great distress on retirement.
But the young job seekers have no jobs and no income at all. As they have done no jobs in the past, their earnings are found to be nil. Most of them have a parasitic dependence on their parents. Thus, their claim to employment would be seen as far greater than old persons clinging on to jobs even after reaching retirement age.
Now that the government has already increased the retirement age, nothing can perhaps be done about it. But it is imperative to seriously take initiatives to create jobs on a large scale for the young ones.
THROUGH an ordinance promulgated by the President, the retirement age of workers engaged in public sector industries from has been 57 years to 60 years. People in the country are living longer and remaining also fitter in many cases compared to the past. This could be an argument for extending the retirement age. Besides, such a step would be welcome to those who wish to retire late in the hope of continuing earnings and to be at work places rather than at homes where they could feel boredom from not having work to do. At any rate, the move to enhance the retirement age will be popular among its beneficiaries.
No precise figures are available for the number of workers who reach retirement age every year in the public sector industries and services in Bangladesh. But even if 10 per cent of them became eligible for retirement, then that would be a number in the neighbourhood of several hundred thousands. This means that from increasing their retirement age for three years, the employment prospects of a similar number of young ones would remain postponed for the same length of time.
But unemployment, specially of young people or the first time potential entrants in the job market, is a huge problem in Bangladesh. This problem would not be helped any but only added to as a result of increasing the retirement age.
The retired persons can fall back on the income or saved amounts of liquid or fixed assets they acquire over time. Besides, they also get a reasonably good one-time terminal benefits and even pensions. The pensioners are also progressively getting payments at better rates these days. In sum, they do not generally fall into great distress on retirement.
But the young job seekers have no jobs and no income at all. As they have done no jobs in the past, their earnings are found to be nil. Most of them have a parasitic dependence on their parents. Thus, their claim to employment would be seen as far greater than old persons clinging on to jobs even after reaching retirement age.
Now that the government has already increased the retirement age, nothing can perhaps be done about it. But it is imperative to seriously take initiatives to create jobs on a large scale for the young ones.