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China announced plans on Friday to raise the retirement age for the first time since the 1950s, in a bid to tackle an aging population and a growing pension crisis. The new policy, which will take effect in 2025, will gradually raise the retirement age for men and women over the next 15 years.
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Expected changes: The country’s current retirement age — 60 for men in all jobs, 50 for women in blue-collar jobs and 55 for women in office jobs — will gradually rise starting next year. By 2039, men will retire at 63, women in blue-collar jobs at 55 and women in office jobs at 58. Many have expressed frustration over the news, with one Weibo user writing: “In the next 10 years, there will be another bill that will delay retirement until we are 80.”
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Boosting the news: China’s demographic challenges, including a shrinking working age and a rapidly growing elderly population, have made the policy shift inevitable. With the country’s life expectancy rising to 78.2 years, raising the retirement age could ease pressure on the pension system. By 2040, nearly a third of the population will be over 60, putting pressure on the pension fund, which is expected to run out by 2035. To complicate matters, China is facing rising youth unemployment, potentially making retirement more difficult. “Young people can’t find jobs and old people can’t retire,” complained another Weibo user.
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