Like most working people around the world, Trinidad and Tobago nationals look forward to retiring, when they can sit back and enjoy the fruits of decades of labour.
Retirement for many means they are now free – they can enjoy their golden years making up for lost time with family, friends and loved ones or seeking an adventure and exploring the world.
So, it was no surprise that when Attorney General Reginald Armour announced that government is seeking to finalise legislation to increase the mandatory retirement age from 60, to 65, it would have ruffled some feathers.
The announcement, according to government officials, came after consultation with several unions and labour representatives.
Last Friday, Armour promised to bring a bill to amend the Senior Citizens Pension Act before the end of this year in order to give “our very knowledgeable and experienced senior citizens the opportunity to continue to contribute to our society.”
He said the amendments would modernise the pension scheme to complement the proposed increase in retirement age.
Many corporate and government bodies have lauded the move, highlighting the benefits of giving people purpose in a time where people are living longer, healthier lives and to maintain a shrinking labour pool. But at the ground level, working people don’t want to retire at 65; they prefer to retire earlier at 60.
This now begs the question: does the decision to increase the age of retirement from 60 to 65 benefit the economy, or the people?
Business sector welcomes move
Economists and industry leaders have already shown their support. Speaking with Business Day, Paul Traboulay, board member of the Association of TT Insurance Companies (ATTIC) and Group CEO at Guardian Group said the move would be beneficial one for the country, being one of the few countries which still has its mandatory retirement age set at 60. He said there were many factors that influence the increase in the retirement age.
[caption id="attachment_981598" align="alignnone" width="700"] With a shrinking and ageing workforce, many business leaders believe it makes sense to increase the mandatory retirement age. Source: realbusiness.co.uk -[/caption]
One of those factors is the issue of longevity.
“The issue is that longevity is increasing. People are simply living longer,” he said.
“The issue is this – we look at longevity risk because it puts pressure on annuities and similarly any payments out of pensions and retirement benefits post the age of retirement means that the income would cease at a particular age and funding would have to continue. When you are running a social security or an individual kind of arrangement to support these people it puts a strain, because the funding mechanism is really tied to the working age of the population.”
According to World Bank statistics life expectancy in TT in 1980 was at about 64 years old. In 2020 it was 71. Macro Trends put TT’s life expectancy in 1980 as 66
