By Ramesh Subbaraman
Singapore’s current retirement age is 62.
But some unionised companies have taken an extra step by enshrining a higher retirement age in their Collective Agreements.
NTUC Deputy Secretary-General Heng Chee How described this as a move towards a variegated retirement age and hopes more companies will consider doing likewise.
In its Budget 2016 recommendations released in February, the Labour Movement had urged the Government to study if Singapore should move away from the current structure of a single retirement age to a more variegated one to meet the diversity in capabilities of workers and industries.
Current Practices
DSG Heng explained that different countries have different retirement ages while some don’t even have a statutory retirement age.
“That tells us immediately that there is no scientific number. Rather, whatever number that has been currently adopted by different countries reflects the socio, economic and political realities and will evolve over time,” he said.
DSG Heng said checks by the NTUC Industrial Relations Department showed that 17 companies have expressed provisions in their Collective Agreements for retirement age above 62, with 12 having upped it to 67.
Among them are the ComfortDelgro group of companies and Cofely Southeast Asia Pte Ltd.
“This is entirely do-able and you don’t need permission and you certainly break no law. It is not new outside Singapore and it is also not completely unheard off in Singapore,” added DSG Heng.
The Sectoral Factor
DSG Heng believes that the variegated retirement age is a concept which can be further explored.
He pointed to the Manpower Ministry’s repeated concerns about the slowdown in the local labour force growth by 2020 or 2025.
Furthermore, feedback from the union ground indicates that workers want to have the choice to work for as long as they are healthy and able.
DSG Heng suggested that flexibility could be exercised on a sectoral level or for a particular job or occupation type to adjust the retirement age according to their needs.
“If you can do that you benefit the people who are working there because when you extend them (a higher retirement age), they have a greater sense of continuity and familiarity. Companies will also get the quality assurance that they need with experienced staff in a generally tight labour market. It is not a huge change that came from nowhere” he said.
He concluded that there is much potential in the concept because the end objective is to make full use of every person in the labour market.
Source: NTUC This Week
