Retirement age stands at 57.3

The average retirement age at large-size companies stood at 57.3 in 2010, compared with 57.2 the previous year, the Ministry of Employment and Labor said Sunday.

The average retirement age was 56.9 in 2006 rising to 57.1 in 2008, the ministry said after surveying 1,829 workplaces nationwide with more than 300 employees.

It said 36.5 percent of the surveyed companies were found to set the retirement age at 55; 22.7 percent at 58; 17.4 percent at 60; and 10.4 percent, 57.

The slight but steady increase in retirement ages reflect various policies to handle aging workers including the peak wage system, which provides older workers an opportunity to work past their retirement age for a salary less than their top salary, it said.

In a separate poll of 8,423 workplaces employing more than 100 workers, 12.1 percent said they began using the peak wage system last year. This was first time that the percentage of firms employing the system has risen above 10 percent since its introduction in 2004.

The ministry pledged to encourage employers to extend the retirement age and hire more retired workers.

But the government is taking a cautious approach toward setting the retirement age at 60 by law.

“It’s difficult to extend the retirement age to 60 by law given its huge impact, but we’re now seeking a way to support employers in their voluntary extension of retirement age,” an official from the ministry said.