Change employment paradigms for the elderly

SOHN HAE-YONG
The author is the business news editor of the JoongAng Ilbo.

A senior in his 70s works as a caregiver at a senior center in Bucheon, Gyeonggi. He has been employed there since he retired from a mid-sized company 10 years ago. Now, he earns 1.5 million won ($1,090) a month by taking care of patients with mobility impairments for six hours a day. It’s not a lot of money, but he feels the vitality of life when he works. “Thanks to this job, I’ve been able to support myself,” he said. “To find a new job, I am studying for a smile treatment certification. I want to work as much as I can.”

Just like him, seniors working to support themselves in their old age are easy to find. According to Statistics Korea, the number of employed people 70 or older stood at 1.85 million last year, up 51.6 percent from 2018. Their annual employment rate rose sharply from 24.3 percent in 2018 and reached the 30 percent level last year for the first time. The statistics office calculated the employment rate of people 75 or older separately for the first time last year, and it accounted for 24.3 percent. That means one in four seniors is currently working.

When compared to those of other countries, working seniors in Korea stand out. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the average effective age of labor market exit is 72.9 years for men and 73.1 years for women in Korea, the oldest of the OECD member countries. The country’s gap with the OECD averages of 65.3 years for men and 63.6 years for women is significant. The remarkable gap stems from Korea’s ultralow birthrate and fast aging as well as older adults’ difficulties procuring financial support from their children and better health conditions from the development of medical technology.

But that high employment rate cannot be solely attributed to the seniors’ growing willingness to work. The demand for elderly workers is increasing, especially in the so-called “3D [difficult, dirty and dangerous] jobs” shunned by young people due to low wages and high intensity of labor. As there are no new workers to replace them, existing workers often continue to be employed even when they are old.

In fact, last year’s distribution of employed people aged 70 and older showed that they were mostly employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing (30 percent); health and social welfare services (23 percent); public administration, defense and social security administration (8 percent); and wholesale and retail (7 percent).

The condition of working seniors featured in major media are sad. They do chores, suffer from low-wage labor, and are forced to work to make a living or support their families. But you don’t have to see them negatively. Poverty among older adults must be eliminated, but it is also necessary for that demographic to remain in workplaces. As Korea’s working-age population rapidly decreases, the labor of working seniors can help sustain the economy.

Many of today’s working retirees are healthy, knowledgeable and proficient with technology. Senior manpower can be used in industries that young people avoid, not to mention to fill job vacancies left by the country’s pitifully low birthrate. Working seniors are often willing to work for courier services, car washes and care firms that young people often avoid. The income from such jobs can lessen the poverty rate of retirees. And senior-friendly industries are expanding just in time. If the productivity and spending power of older adults increases at the same time, it can help address the country’s serious challenges like low growth, labor shortage and pension depletion.

It is necessary to change the job structure and shift the paradigm to a society where older adults can work. The system of setting a certain age as the standard for “elderly” and excluding them from the labor market should be revamped. The legal age for retirement — currently fixed at 65 in Korea — should be raised. Companies that continue to hire older workers should receive more governmental assistance. The seniority-based rank and wage system also must change, and a flexible working system should be introduced to encourage employees to work into old age. Only then can we mitigate the massive social cost of our fast-aging society and prepare for labor shortages in the future.