Korea ranks first in the OECD in poverty among the elderly… “Send them as poor, low-wage workers later in life”

As Korea is aging rapidly, there are many people Poverty among the elderly is a serious problem due to lack of preparation for old age.

According to the Korea Employment Information Service on the 4th, Bank of Korea head Oh Tae-hee and Incheon University assistant professor Lee Jang-yeon presented a thesis containing this content at the Employment Panel Survey Academic Conference ‘the day before.

Korea’s average life expectancy has increased from 72 years in 1991 to 86 years in 2021, after 30 years. However, many elderly people suffer from economic difficulties due to the immaturity of public and private pension systems, the interim settlement of retirement benefits, the rapid increase in life expectancy, and the lack of savings. In fact, as of 2020, Korea’s elderly poverty rate was 40.4%, the highest among OECD member countries.

Lack of preparation for retirement leads to high employment rates among the elderly. The employment rate of those aged 65 or over in Korea is 34.9% as of 2021, which is also the highest in the OECD. There are many people who work even when they are old to make a living.

Most of them are low paid workers. Last year, the average monthly income of 68-year-old workers in Korea was 1.8 million won, 42% less than the income of 58-year-olds (3.11 million won). The labor market participation rate and average monthly income of 50-year-olds was 97% and 3.71 million earned, respectively, but has continued to fall since then, with 27% of 75-year-olds working, and their monthly average. the earned income was found to be only 1.39 million won.

The proportion of the elderly aged 65 or older in the total population is expected to increase from 17.5% last year to 46.4% in 2070. This means that the problem of poverty among the elderly in Korea is likely to worsen in the future.

“Unlike the elderly in major developed countries who voluntarily retire earlier and spend more leisure time after achieving economic stability, many of the elderly in Korea spend most of the last half of their lives as poor, low-wage workers,” the paper said.