(ECNS) -- As the government makes plans to raise China's statutory retirement age, over 90 percent of respondents to a survey by China Youth Daily and Sohu.com said they are unwilling to delay retirement.
Yin Weimin, minister of Human Resources and Social Security, said measures to combat the effects of an aging population will certainly be introduced this year to solicit public opinion before they take effect.
China's current retirement age is 60 for men, 55 for female white-collar workers and 50 for female blue-collar employees.
The survey of 169,063 respondents showed 90.3 percent paid attention to news about the retirement age change, especially people born in 1960s and 1970s who are most likely to be affected.
It also found that 91.1 percent are opposed to working more years before retirement. Over 81 percent believe a delayed retirement better benefits those working in government departments and public institutions.
Nearly 81 percent are worried about getting lower pensions after the policy change. And 76.8 percent called for a flexible retirement age.
Some 88 percent are worried that delayed retirement means more job competition among younger people.
Deng Dasong, director of the Center for Social Security Studies at Wuhan University, said China creates about 10 million new jobs each year and about 30 percent are replacements for those who retire. He said there will be fewer job opportunities when the retirement age rises, creating a hurdle for young people to enter the labor market.
But Zheng Bingwen, director of the World Social Security Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said jobs for younger and older generations are different, therefore, employment opportunities will not be affected by a later retirement age.
