[News Today] Push to extend retirement age to 65

[LEAD]
Labor groups are calling on the National Assembly to pass a bill this year to raise the retirement age from 60 to 65.

The proposal was one of President Lee Jae Myung's key campaign pledges.

The ruling party is also aiming to pass it by the end of the year.

Attention now turns to whether labor, business, and society can reach a consensus.

[REPORT]
The nation's two umbrella labor unions visited parliament and pressured for the passage of a bill on extending the legally-set retirement age within this year.

Currently, the ages for receiving state pension vary depending on individuals' birth year, but it will be unified to 65 starting from 2033.

The labor unions argue that this would cause a five-year income gap if the retirement age remains at 60.

Kim Dong-myeong / Chair, Federation of Korean Trade Unions
The government is sitting on its hands with no measures. Stances of labor and management have been already confirmed.

Yang Kyung-soo / Chair, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
We are not pushing to extend retirement age from next year but to do so in sync with the pension receipt age change.

The Democratic Party is determined to conclude the legislation on extending the retirement age to 65 within this year.

The DP stressed it is necessary to extend the retirement age to ensure the elderly's income security and the state pension fund's financial stability while promoting the use of skilled workers.

The ruling party plans to begin with compromising opinions between labor and management and among different generations with its special committee at the center.

Kim Byung-kee / Floor Leader, Democratic Party (Nov. 3)
A society-wide debate involving all generations, labor and management is needed. The retirement age extension issue needs a more serious approach and an early conclusion.

A total of 12 bills on retirement age extension have been submitted to the National Assembly.

The DP proposes to extend the retirement age to 65 while deleting the requirement for employers to revise the wage system.

The People Power Party prefers a proposal to maintain the wage system revision requirement while allowing employers to choose between extending the retirement age and re-hiring retired employees.

The DP's special committee plans to soon devise a bill addressing the business sector's concerns such as a possible decrease in jobs for the youth and the wage system revision.

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