Determining the Right Retiring Age

In some countries the average worker is obliged to retire at the age of 50, while in others people can work until they are 65 or 70. Meanwhile, we see some politicians enjoying power well into their eighties. Clearly, there is little agreement on an appropriate retirement age. In my thought, the ideal age of retirement should be differed based on the kind of job that people are doing. There are some jobs which require prime physical condition, while other jobs “merely” require experience or charisma.

The jobs which require prime physical condition should have an earlier retirement age. Blue collar jobs such as brick layer, miner, athlete, and porter are some jobs that need early retirement. Those jobs take a lot of stamina, and therefore, doing those jobs in old age has the risk of deteriorating one’s health. The risk of injury and accident is also increased along with the growth of worker’s age. Mohammad Ali for example, suffers Parkinson’s disease after retiring. Parkinson is one of age-related diseases (http://www.aphroditewomenshealth.com/news/20030418225016_health_news.shtml), but the doctors suspected that Ali’s got too much impact in his head while boxing. So, it is understandable, that jobs like Mohammad Ali’s should have an earlier retirement age.

However, many countries still have the same retirement age for every job. Singapore for example, has set the regulation of workers’ retirement age at 62 (Anon. http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en/communities/workplace_standards/employment_standards/The_Retirement_Age_Act.html). Many countries other than Singapore have set the same retirement age.

But, there are some jobs which require experience and charisma, which should have a late retirement age. The best example of this kind of job is politician, CEO, and senior doctors. They may not have the best physical condition, but their experience, wisdom, and charisma are needed by the new cadets to be set for example, or for the people led by him/her to get a dependable figure. One may replace their position with a better physical condition, but maybe not with better, even the same experience and skill. The minimum age for a president in United States is 35 (http://www.usconstitution.net/xconst_A2Sec1.html ). John McCain, the republican candidate for president of United States, is 72 at age. It proves that some jobs need a late retirement age.

In conclusion, the ideal retirement age differs from one job to another. Each job has its own physical and intellectual requirements. Some jobs need high level of stamina, while others need charisma and intelligence. These factors should be considered to determine the ideal retirement age.

References

Parkinson [Online Article] : Retrieved May 3, 2008 from the World Wide Web:http://www.aphroditewomenshealth.com/news/20030418225016_health_news.shtml)

Singapore’s retirement age [ Online Article] : Retrieved May 3, 2008 from the World Wide Web:http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal/en/communities/workplace_standards/employment_standards/The_Retirement_Age_Act.html)

US’ minimum president age [Online Article]: Retrieved May 3, 2008 from the World Wide Web: (http://www.usconstitution.net/xconst_A2Sec1.html )