Retirement age should be a personal decision based on one's finances and health, among other things, of course. Yet, governments around the world have a lot to do with that decision. As the economic crisis continues, many countries are considering raising the age for retirement with full benefits.
That would be tragic and wouldn't necessarily accomplish its goal.
Those who have saved enough money for retirement don't need to worry too much about the U.S. or any other country raising the retirement age. But for the majority of us who haven't saved enough or were wiped out by the current recession, retirement is beginning to seem like an impossibility. That is not good for the human spirit that longs for some down time. Raising the age would only make matters worse for older individuals already struggling to stay on the job.
People retiring is one of the ways jobs become available to folks who are looking for work. Fewer retirements means more people in need of unemployment benefits and other assistance. That in turn increases nations' deficits. So I don't see the logic in forcing senior citizens to remain in the workforce. I understand that paying into Social Security is better for the government than people collecting their benefits, but countries shouldn't fatten up their federal budgets on the labor of senior citizens. What next? Reduce the legal age of when minors can work so that they can pay taxes?
The irony is that while some people are willing and capable of working into their golden years, age discrimination laws aren't enforced enough to prevent some companies from forcing older workers out the door. So while governments may raise the retirement age to cope with economic concerns, they should also take a long look at how older employees are treated in the workforce and job market. Tightening up age-discrimination laws will do far more to keep able seniors working than raising the retirement age.
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