By Park Hyong-ki
Elderly people in Korea want to keep working, according to a survey by Statistics Korea, Tuesday.
The survey showed people aged 55 to 79 want to work until they are 72.
The top reason given was the need to keep earning for their post-retirement lives.
Also, the elderly receive an average monthly pension of 520,000 won ($466) after retirement, which is not enough to live on.
A majority of people leave work before 50 after working at a company for an average of 15 years.
More than half are able to re-enter the job market as they get older, the statistics agency noted.
However, most of the jobs they secure are of low quality.
As of May, the elderly population stood at nearly 13 million, which accounts for 30 percent of the population above age 15.
The elderly population increased more than 4 percent from a year ago.
Of the 13 million, more than half are economically active. This includes 7 million who are currently working. Their employment rate stood at 54.8 percent.