Kuomintang Legislator Yang Chong-ying pointed out that Taiwan's average life expectancy now stands at 76 years old and that the size of the labor force had decreased as a result of a low birth rate. Therefore, she said, manpower resources offered by older people should be better utilized. Yang added that around the world, populations are aging, and that it is a natural trend for governments to increase the mandatory retirement age. By doing so, more job opportunities could be created for both employers and workers, Yang claimed. In particular, she cited the problem facing many companies that were finding it difficult to fill positions requiring trained workers.
The measure was also a response to the ever-changing society in which the health and longevity of Taiwanese people have been improving. According to official data, the average life expectancy in Taiwan has risen from 70.5 for men and 75.5 for women in 1984 to 74.65 for men and 80.74 for women today. Therefore, an extended retirement age would help ease the financial burden imposed on the workforce in Taiwanese society that has to care for aging dependents.
Initially, officials with the Cabinet-level Council of Labor Affairs suggested a step-by-step approach to extending the retirement age. For example, they proposed that adjusting the ceiling after 13 years could ease the impact of the revision on local enterprises. Officials explained that an abrupt change without policy flexibility could create tension in the labor force, as employers might fire older workers to avoid paying the extra pension and health insurance costs.
KMT legislators Hsu Shao-ping and Chung Shao-ho, initiators of the amendment, opposed the CLA officials' suggestion and mobilized other KMT lawmakers to ensure the committee review was completed.
In response, the CLA officials stressed that after the revision was ratified, it would mostly benefit only employees at state-run enterprises, and contracted workers, technicians and drivers hired by government units, who were all protected under the labor insurance umbrella. The officials continued that despite current regulations, quite a few businesses tried to force employees to retire or leave their jobs before they actually became 60 years old. If the retirement age was boosted to 65, such undesirable practices might continue or even become worse, the officials added.
In addition, the Chinese National Federation of Industries, the largest industrial group in Taiwan, noted that based on the current health conditions of local people, a 65-year-old man or woman may indeed be physically and mentally suitable for taking on employment, but if they did, they would effectively be reducing the number of job opportunities available for the youth of Taiwan. Therefore, the CNFI insisted that the government should not raise the retirement age.
"Higher unemployment among young people would also lead to a lower mobility in the labor force. Furthermore, many European countries actually employ opposite measures, dropping the mandatory retirement age to relieve heavy financial burdens on employers," agreed Lee Jian-hong, an assistant professor with the Department of Labor and Human Resources at Taipei's Chinese Culture University.
This was the first time that lawmakers had focused on adjusting the retirement age since the Labor Standards Law was put into practice in 1984. However, the draft amendment still needs to go through two more readings before it can be enacted, a process that was estimated to be completed by June this year.
Write to Tso Lon-di at londi@mail.gio.gov.tw