Why Singaporean elderly are called "seniors"? It will be clear if you look at the pension policy

Elderly people living in Singapore have a unique honorific title called "seniors"! "Senior citizens" mainly refers to people over 60 years old, which literally means "at the age of happiness". The so-called "elderly" is actually another name for retired people over 60 years old. We hope that they can live a peaceful and happy life in their later years.

Judging from the special names given to the elderly, Singapore is a country that attaches great importance to elderly care. So what are some unique practices in Singapore?

First of all - reducing the burden on the government

"Elderly care" is a worldwide problem. Due to the physical function of the elderly, a large amount of funds need to be invested to ensure the life and safety of the elderly. For health and other issues, the amount of funds is also quite staggering.

Singapore mainly adopts "light welfare policies to reduce the government's pension burden"! You read that right, it is to reduce the burden on the government! Some friends may be surprised to see this! No wonder there are so many old people in Singapore who are still working with wrinkles all over their faces.

In Singapore, the most important pension security is the Central Provident Fund System (CPE), which is equivalent to the domestic "three insurances and one fund", but Singapore has a unified name. CPE is compulsory savings and mainly provides comprehensive security services including medical care, education, pension, housing, etc.

CPE is generally divided into 3 accounts:

① Ordinary accounts can be used to purchase houses, CPE insurance, investments and children’s education;

② Special accounts are used for Pension and purchase of related financial products;

③Health care account is used to pay medical expenses.

Once a member reaches retirement age, the government will set up a new pension account for them. Those who meet the requirements can receive monthly pensions after the age of 65. The account requires a minimum deposit after retirement. Those who meet the requirements can receive a monthly pension of S$1,200 after the age of 65, for 20 years in one year. But often when retirement age is reached, the elderly in Singapore are unwilling to retire! As mentioned just now, when you walk on the streets of Singapore, you will find a lot of elderly employees. This is absolutely different from that in China!

What exactly is the reason?

①Salary

The statutory retirement age in Singapore is 62 years old, and the re-employment retirement age is 65 years old. However, more and more elderly Singaporeans are still active after these ages. At work. Last year, more than 40% of Singaporeans aged 65-69 were still working. Compared with 24% in 2006, this proportion was a full 16 percentage points higher. The increase in employment for the elderly is due to many factors including government policies, a tight job market, and people's longer life span and healthy years. Singapore regulations: The re-employment age of employees is 62 to 65 years old. Currently, almost all employees who have reached the age of 62 have been re-employed. Moreover, as long as the re-employed people's job responsibilities remain unchanged, they will not even have their basic salary reduced. In 2014, 98% of employed people over the age of 62 did not have their salary cut, and 10% received a salary increase.

②Age

The average life expectancy in Singapore will increase by 3 years every ten years. In 2014, the average life expectancy of men in Singapore was 80.5 years and that of women was 84.9 years. As life expectancy increases, people are worried about whether they will have enough money to continue to cope with their retirement life, as Singapore's pension system lasts for 20 years. With income, the elderly can become financially independent and do not need to rely on their children.

③Encouragement

The government itself has launched policies to encourage companies to hire older employees. Singaporeans and permanent residents aged 60 and above are employed in jobs including cleaners, machinery operators, service and sales staff. If a company hires employees over 65 years old, the government will also subsidize the company. The median monthly income of employees aged over 60 increased from S$1,160 in 2006 to S$2,000 in 2015. In this way, companies feel that hiring older employees is actually a good deal. At the same time, as Singapore tightens the inflow of foreign workers, resulting in a tight labor market, employers have begun to seriously consider hiring older workers. Last year, 25% of Singaporeans aged 65 and above were employed. In 2006, this proportion was only 13.8%. Some people predict that in the next 10 years, the employment rate of the elderly will easily reach 30%.

④ Mentality

Many elderly people understand that employment, even part-time work, can allow the elderly to interact with society. It is precisely because of this interaction that the elderly will not be helpless. Being imprisoned within the family, one can enjoy a relatively rich life in old age. Moreover, delaying retirement is a matter of public opinion. With the gradual increase in average life expectancy, Singapore has repeatedly delayed the retirement age to 62 years old. In 2011, it passed the Re-employment Ordinance. Employees can continue to work on a voluntary basis after retirement, and employers must Three-year re-employment contracts are provided to employees over the age of 62 who meet health conditions, increasing the flexibility of retirement age. At the same time, we actively help middle-aged and elderly people improve their employability and encourage them to do jobs within their capabilities. Employees over 40 years old are free of charge for training, and employees over 50 years old can receive government-rewarded wages after working on the job for 6 months. Car drivers can work until they are 70 years old.

It is worth noting that leaders of the labor movement have recently proposed many times to raise the upper limit of re-employment age to 67 to allow more people to stay employed for as long as possible, which to a certain extent represents realistic public opinion.

In order to prevent the elderly from being discriminated against in the workplace, the government revised the regulations this year and announced that from July 1, 2017, it would cancel the legal regulations that allow employers to reduce the salary of employees over 60 years old. This regulation was proposed by the Singaporean government in 1999 when it raised the retirement age from 60 to 62 years old. Under this provision, employers can reduce employees' salaries by up to 10% when extending their retirement years. The lifting of this requirement clears the way for older people to re-enter the workplace.

Secondly, the elderly plan

Singapore’s total population is 5.47 million, and the proportion of people over 65 years old is close to 13%. Moreover, due to the continued sluggish birth rate, in recent years, the number of jobs corresponding to an elderly person has The number of citizens has dropped from 7.6 in 2004 to 5.2. This means that there are currently less than 6 working citizens in Singapore responsible for supporting an elderly person, and the number of elderly people supporting them is still increasing, while the number of working citizens is decreasing, and the contrast is increasing. However, relying solely on the government to provide elderly care will obviously cause a large financial burden. Therefore, the Singapore government has introduced a series of policies to help and improve the quality of life of the elderly, including a subsidy program for HDB housing to encourage children to live with their parents. Families participate in the HDB housing subsidy program and build senior apartments for the elderly.

HDB flat cash-out means that residents who own HDB flats can obtain additional monthly income through the deed buyback scheme, exchanging large houses for small houses, and renting out HDB flats. This is mainly aimed at residents with financial difficulties. In recent years, the government has continuously promoted and emphasized the traditional virtue of respecting the elderly and caring for the young. As a welfare property, HDB flats are provided to local residents. During the design and construction, apartment types suitable for multiple generations living under one roof are specially designed and discounts are given on the purchase price. This type of house is similar to two houses that are connected by the living room. The two households are divided and combined, so that the elders and younger generations can live in harmony. In addition, for families with children who are willing to live close to their parents, the government will provide cash rebates of up to S$40,000 when purchasing HDB flats. Singles who buy HDB flats and live with their parents can also enjoy a provident fund housing subsidy of S$20,000.

Simply solving the problem of elderly care is not enough. The quality of life of the elderly is a subject of greater concern. In fact, the elderly care facilities in Singapore are relatively complete, and it can be said to be one of the most suitable countries for the elderly to live in in terms of daily life. For example, most public transport vehicles are wheelchair accessible, and drivers and passengers will patiently help elderly people with mobility issues get on and off the bus; each HDB flat has an activity area for the elderly and children, as well as food courts and bus stops. , the homeowners can eat when they go downstairs, and there are covered green corridors from the door of the house to the station to facilitate residents to travel on rainy days, which also greatly reduces slip and fall accidents for the elderly. In March 2016, Singapore launched the "Happy Aging Plan" for the elderly. The government will invest S$3 billion to promote more than 70 plans covering 12 areas including medicine and health care, retirement, employment, housing and transportation.

Judging from the content disclosed in the plan, the Singaporean government is truly thoughtful and meticulous in caring for the elderly. New plans that appeared in the full report for the first time include extending the opening and closing time of subway car doors from 2 seconds to 6 seconds during non-peak hours, giving the elderly more time to get in and out of the cars. In addition, bus stops and taxi ranks will be replaced with seats equipped with armrests to help the elderly stand up. The People's Association will draw on existing facilities and community networks to provide medical services, promote health education and senior learning under the Wellbeing Project, with the goal of creating a Wellbeing Center in every community.

This attention to detail is also reflected in the facilities in senior apartments built by the government in recent years. For example, handrails have been added to both sides of stairs and corridors, and conspicuous color cues are used at all places where direction and height change. Considering that the elderly are hunched over, the positions of switches, doorbells, door and window handles and other facilities are appropriately lowered. The eyesight and hearing of the elderly are generally not very good, so the lighting in apartment rooms is twice that of ordinary houses, the words on various gas switches and other switches are large, and the volume of the alarm system is also appropriately increased. In addition, each senior apartment has a neighborhood contact station, where the elderly can come here to participate in various singing, reading and other activities, and also chat with each other to pass the time.

For those who do not live in senior apartments, each constituency in Singapore also has community clubs, community liaison offices and recreation centers. These venues are allocated by the government and bear part of the operating expenses, and hold cultural events regularly. , social and leisure activities, and provide health examination, information consultation, daily care and other services. In addition, Singapore also has day care and various social care institutions. For families who have no time to take care of the elderly and children, Singapore has established a "three-in-one family center" that organically combines elderly care homes and daycares, allowing "old children" and "little children" to live together. Centralized management of old and young people not only complies with the development needs of society, solves the worries of young people, but also satisfies people's spiritual needs and enhances interpersonal interactions and communication.