Higher retirement age for civil servants mustn't harm public interest
Joseph Wong applauds the government's plan to raise the retirement age for civil servants, but says the conditions set for the new limits must be clearly spelled out to protect public interests
The government's proposal of a higher retirement age for newly hired civil servants and more flexible post-retirement opportunities for those already serving have far-reaching implications across society.
Unlike some developed countries, Hong Kong has no mandatory retirement age. Most private-sector employees retire at 60, which is the retirement age set for civilian grades in the civil service (while the disciplined services retire at 55, or 57 for senior ranks). Yet, under the Mandatory Provident Fund scheme applicable to all employees except the lowest-paid, the stipulated age for the withdrawal of accrued benefits is 65. Added to this anomaly is the fact that Hong Kong's population is ageing fast, with one in three expected to reach 65 and above by 2041.
Against this background, it makes sense for the government to propose a higher retirement age for recruits. The plan is to raise the limit to 65 for civil servants in civilian grades, and 57 for officers in the disciplined services grades. The latter may also be allowed to work until 60, provided they pass the relevant assessments and physical fitness test.
The present retirement age for civil servants was fixed in 1987, 27 years ago. In 1987, life expectancy in Hong Kong was 74 for men and 80 for women. Now it is 81 and 87 respectively. So a higher retirement age is clearly justified in demographic terms. It is certainly not high when compared with, say, Taiwan, which has a mandatory retirement age of 65. In other places in the region, most people work beyond 60 and the trend is to raise the retirement age beyond 60.
Based on the projection of the number of retirees in the civil service - that is, an annual average of 4.4 per cent of civil service strength for the five-year period from 2017-18 to 2022-23, and declining to 3.4 per cent for the next five years ending 2027-28 - I agree with the Civil Service Bureau that there is no justification to extend the retirement age of serving civil servants across the board, as the government did in 1987.