PETALING JAYA: Workers should be allowed to work up to the age of 65 should they choose to do so, says the Malaysian Association of Social Protection Contributors' Advisory Services (SPCAAM).
"According to the United Nations Population Division, global life expectancy at birth for both sexes increased from 46.5 years in 1950 to 71.7 years in 2022. During the same period, the increase in life expectancy in Malaysia was from 52.8 to 76.51 years. People are therefore living longer, and finding it difficult to sustain themselves economically upon their retirement.
"Conversely, where people are not gainfully employed and do not have enough to sustain themselves economically once they retire, the strain is felt both personally and more generally by the national economy. Japan is a case in point, where the economy has stuttered for years," its International Labour Advisor Callistus Antony D'angelus said in a statement Sunday (April 9).
To help tackle this issue, the association has proposed to allow workers to work until 65 years old, should the individual choose to do so.
"For those who continue to work beyond 60 years of age, it should not involve employment on a contract basis as that would give rise to precarious and exploitative employment practices of aged workers. This way, workers can work beyond 60 and up to 65 years of age, thereby easing the economic strain on themselves and the nation as a whole.
"For those who elect to retire at 60 years of age for whatever reason, they should be allowed to do so. This should apply to both the private and public sectors.
"The country needs some creative and equitable solutions for issues affecting workers in the country, and a major reform of labour and economic policies is required. The administration of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, with its reform agenda in place, is well equipped to carry out such reform," he said.
The SPCAAM noted that private employees who depend solely on their Employees Provident Fund after retiring are also severely challenged and that the EPF had also reported that 51.5% of its members under the age of 55 had savings below the RM10,000 mark.
