40% of Elderly in Korea Working... NYT Highlights Seniors Unable to Retire

Low Pensions Below Living Expenses... Unable to Leave Work
East Asia Faces Population Decline and Decrease in Young Workforce Entry

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 7th (local time) that in East Asian countries such as Korea, Japan, and China, the number of elderly people continuing to work hard beyond the traditional retirement age is increasing due to aging populations. In these countries, as the population declines and fewer young people enter the labor market, there is an increasing number of elderly people in their 70s and older who have to keep working.

Due to changes in population structure, pension systems in each country are struggling, making it difficult to provide retirees with enough monthly pension to live on. Demographers have been warning for years about the 'demographic time bomb' in developed countries, but in East Asia, including Japan, governments, companies, and the elderly themselves are already painfully experiencing the realities of an aging society, NYT reported.

Yoshihito Onami (73), who worked in office jobs and as a taxi driver in his youth, now delivers groceries. He wakes up at 1:30 a.m. and drives a truck to work. He said, "Working at this age is not enjoyable, but I work to make a living." His basic pension is 60,000 yen (about 570,000 won) per month.

In Korea, the elderly poverty rate and the proportion of people aged 65 and over who work are both about 40%. In Hong Kong, one in eight elderly people work, while in Japan, one in four elderly people work. This is a higher level compared to the United States (18%).

As dependence on elderly workers increases, the labor market landscape and policies are also changing. In Japan and Korea, there are temporary job placement centers and labor unions for elderly workers. In Japan, some companies recruit only people aged 60 and over, and the Japanese government provides subsidies to small and medium-sized enterprises that strengthen facilities for elderly employees.

The shadows related to working elderly people are also deepening. Stable regular office jobs are mostly given to younger people, while elderly people mainly get low-wage, physically demanding contract positions. Low-wage contract workers receive only the basic pension provided by the state, not corporate retirement pensions. NYT pointed out that the average pension in Korea, China, and Japan is less than $500 (about 630,000 won) per month. NYT also introduced a facility in Korea where elderly people line up from 9 a.m. to receive lunch coupons starting at 11:30 a.m.

Each country is attempting policy changes such as corporate subsidies and adjusting retirement ages to respond to the aging workforce and find ways to reduce elderly poverty rates. Stuart Basten, a social science professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, emphasized the need for response, saying, "Will we just panic and wander in fear, or will we say, 'It is complicated, but we must adapt our lives and systems in a significantly different way'?"