HERE we go again. The World Bank last year said Malaysia should gradually increase the retirement age to 65 because of its rapidly ageing population.
One year later on Thursday, the Public Service Department director-general spoke about the global body's prescription.
Tan Sri Mohd Khairul Adib Abd Rahman said the idea would be re-examined. An important consideration, he pointed out, are the half-a-million job-hungry graduates churned out annually by institutions of higher learning.
Perhaps we will follow the World Bank's advice soon. Perhaps, too, the retirement age will continue to go up in 10-year cycles (and after endless debate) now that most people are living longer. (But they are not necessarily healthier, going by the 2019 National Health and Morbidity Survey numbers.)
Of course, modern folks walking on this Earth as long as some biblical characters, many of whom lived for hundreds of years, is unlikely to happen. Methuselah was alive for 969 years! Gosh, if we were to live that long, when would we retire ah?
But do you want to be in your current job until 65? If you own a firm, would keeping people until 65 worry or gladden you?
Here's what some folks think.
Zulkarnain, a teacher of 25 years
No, retiring at 65 is not for me. In fact, I would like to retire before 60.
I am saying this because I find that my tasks nowadays are so far removed from teaching and nurturing. There's just too much focus on documentation. The pressure makes us forget our true purpose in life.
R. Rajan, a human resource executive since 1991
Working to 65 may be good for some, but not for me. I am not rich, but I believe my family and I can get by. We don't really consume much anyway.
After so many years of working, I think I need a change of pace. I want to spend more time with my family and friends. And my wife and I are fortunate our kids are supportive of us. Many others may not be so lucky.
Hartini. S, a logistics company executive who's been in the workforce for 27 years
Frankly, I find it astonishing that people may have to keep slogging to 65 in the same job to survive. They are robbed of their time. How long more will they live?
It's such an unfair world. The rich have it easy. The not so rich have to work for peanuts until they die.
I am not wealthy, but I have enough. I'll retire at 60, for sure. And maybe take up some flexible work after that.
Y.S. Chong, salesperson with more than 25 years of experience
From a personal perspective, I think that working longer is good for the body, mind and soul.
But I'm not looking at sustenance. I'm all for job satisfaction and doing something meaningful before I reach the twilight years.
Having said that, sometimes it depends on the environment we work in. Take for instance, when there's an oversupply of young talent in the economy. It may not be conducive for senior workers to continue working simply because there are many capable and knowledgeable younger workers waiting in line to succeed them.
K.L. Yap, director of an international business outfit
It depends on the seniority and the type of work. In leadership roles, older employees have experience, knowledge and poise that are required for their positions.
However, in less senior positions, employers look for productivity. Older employees are not as productive. Hence, even if the retirement age is extended, employers are unlikely to favour older employees as their salaries are higher but they are less productive. If they do, it is more as a social responsibility than a commercial objective.
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What about you? Think about it. The debate has not ended for the challenges are too big --- poor savings, poor health, graying populace, fractured families. What remedy, apart from the World Bank's prescription, would you adopt?
The writer is NST production editor