Lawmakers urge gov’t to establish legal retirement age

Lawmakers Chui Sai Peng, Ip Sio Kai, and Wang Sai Man want the government to significantly improve the laws regarding retirement by establishing a legal retirement age in Macau. The legislators expressed this desire in a spoken inquiry delivered yesterday at the Legislative Assembly.

During the period before the agenda, Wang, speaking on behalf of the three, called on the government to improve the regimes regarding retirement to improve the quality of life and benefits of the population when they reach an older age.

According to Wang in his inquiry, “Choosing the time to stop working is part of people’s plans, but just as voter registration is done at 18 and the minimum age to enter casinos was set at 21, it is appropriate to set a retirement age.” He additionally noted that this is the first major step before policies for the older population can then be properly drafted.

The lawmakers noted that there are significant differences between the private and the public sector. While for the public sector, the government clearly defined the retirement age of civil servants, noting that the maximum age for the exercise of public functions is 65 years old. The government has also defined the compensation to be distributed upon retirement from the public sector. However, this provision is not made for the general population working in the private sector.

Wang noted that the government’s establishment of benefits for senior citizens aged 65 years and older, has led the population to believe this is the statutory retirement age. However, there is in fact no legal regime establishing that age as the retirement age, which according to the lawmakers, causes constant “mistakes and injustices.”

The lawmakers also noted that there is a rule in the mainland followed by most state-owned companies that sets the retirement age at 60 years old for men and 55 for women. Upon reaching these ages, individuals receive a survival pension and provident fund support.

Wang said that the lack of a legal retirement age in the city leads to many situations in which older employees face dismissal by the companies without being legally protected by a retirement regime. 

At the same opportunity, they called for the perfecting of legislation on the warranties and benefits for the older population.