Older workers toil under financial burdens: survey

EMPLOYMENT CONCERNS:One-third of respondents to a poll taken earlier this year said they want to find a part-time job after they retire from full-time work

Staff writer, with CNA

More than 70 percent of older workers have to work at least 40 hours a week, mainly because they still have financial burdens such as their children’s education, mortgages and other family expenditures, according to the results of a recently released government survey.

The Ministry of Labor’s Institute of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health commissioned the survey of workers aged 45 years or above, which was conducted between Jan. 19 and April 17.

Of the 1,075 valid samples, men accounted for 57.5 percent, with those aged between 45 and 54 accounting for 63.2 percent of the male responses.

Nearly 90 percent of respondents had an educational level of high school or higher and 70.5 percent said they have to work because of financial responsibilities.

The three top economic pressures cited were children’s educational costs (20.7 percent), mortgages (17.2 percent) and other household expenditures (14.5 percent), the survey found.

The respondents had an average 27.2 years of work experience and 46.6 percent said they have to work between 40 and 49 hours per week, with 23.9 percent clocking 50 hours or more of work per week.

The full-time to part-time ratio of these workers was 9:1.

Nearly half, or 46.4 percent, were employed by the private sector, 30.3 percent by the government and 12.7 percent were self-employed. About 45 percent earned less than NT$40,000 per month.

Nearly 20 percent of those surveyed said they fear losing their jobs because their employers are downsizing or want to hire younger workers, or because their health is deteriorating. More than one-third, or 36.1 percent, said they would like to find a new job after retiring from their current ones.

The institute said the survey showed older workers must deal with family economic burdens, long work hours, unsatisfying pay, low job security and scant resources for job training.

It urged the public and private sectors to build a senior-friendly employment environment and help older workers gain new abilities for continued employment.

Both sectors have a duty to create an environment that will allow retirees who want to re-enter the job market so that they can keep contributing to society, it added.

The institute said the poll had a margin of error of 2.99 percentage points.