Delegates at a seminar hosted by the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and the International Labor Organization held in Hanoi on Thursday proposed that Vietnam should increase the retirement age for both men and women.
Deputy Minister Pham Minh Huan said that Vietnam’s population is fast aging, and reasonable and timely adjustments should be made to balance pension funds made after retirement.
Delegates at the seminar suggested that from 2016, the retirement age for women should be 56 years and subsequently every three years another year be added to finally fix the retirement age for women at 60 years.
By 2045, the retirement age for both men and women should be set at 65 years.
Besides, the method to calculate retirement pension should also be amended because of imbalances in benefits between state civil servants and those working in private companies.
According to delegates, Vietnamese laborers retire too early, especially women, while many are allowed early retirement much before their regulated age. Meanwhile, life expectancy has improved over the years and birth rate has fallen considerably.
At present, the retirement age for men is 60 years and for women it is 55 years, under normal circumstances.
