Retirement Age in China Rises

  The decision of China to increase the retirement age has been a subject of intense debate and discussion, not only in the country but also internationally. This policy change is in response to demographic pressures from an aging population and a shrinking workforce, which presents risks related to slowing economic growth and social stability.

A major reason for the increase in the retirement age is that Chinese people are living longer. Life expectancy has been rising rapidly over the last few decades, and with that, there are also more elderly people in need of financial support. The pension system is under threat in the medium term, and the government wants to offset this by extending working life.

Sewanhaka High School junior Hamza Rafiq said, “I feel that China will have to raise the retirement age in order to accommodate its aging population.” It helps balance the workforce and ensures that the economy is able to continue growing without collapsing under pension costs.

A second important element of this policy change is how it may influence the behavior of the next generation. In a related difficulty, as more laborers remain in the workforce longer, there might be fewer jobs accessible for young people entering the employment market. This could hopefully result in a more competitive environment, which theoretically could lead to the few young people who have yet to experience unemployment doing so eventually. Monim Hoque, a junior at Sewanhaka High School, shares these concerns. “While the policy could possibly benefit the economy in the short run, we have to think about how it affects working-class young individuals who are trying to find jobs. The government must find the balance between them and provide for both the elderly and the youth.”

The change in policy might also have social and economic consequences, especially for people who work in physically intensive labor sectors. For those in labor-intensive jobs, this may be difficult to maintain and could result in workers having health problems and low productivity. Junior Naeem Hoque at Sewanhaka High School made the same point: “You have to think about all of the physical toll that a job like working 12 hours in a warehouse would take on a person.” Ministers need to either “provide more help” to such workers, including health benefits, or increase efforts to crack down on the illegal economy.