Public enterprise employees indicated an average of 54.8 years, while mid-sized enterprise employees said 50.8, and major enterprises 48.8. Meanwhile, the average age estimated by male participants was 51.7, compared to 49.9 for female participants. (image: Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, June 2 (Korea Bizwire) – Although this year was supposed to mark the beginning of a ‘retirement in your 60s’ cultural shift, current workers have projected their own retirement age to be barely over 50.
‘Job Korea’, an employment portal website, conducted a survey on 1,405 employees of both genders with the question, ‘Considering the current situation, until what age do you think your working life will extend to?’ The website reported on June 1 that the average estimated retirement age for participants was 50.9 years of age.
On the other hand, when the participants were asked, ‘Do you think your employment is secured until your retirement?’, only 18.6 percent answered ‘yes’ – which meant less than one-fifth.
However, the ages estimated by the surveyed employees varied according to various factors, such as gender and most importantly, by type of enterprise.
Public enterprise employees indicated an average of 54.8 years, while mid-sized enterprise employees said 50.8, and major enterprises 48.8. Meanwhile, the average age estimated by male participants was 51.7, compared to 49.9 for female participants.
Employees from several fields replied with an age less than 50, while those in human resources and general affairs answered 49.7 years; marketing and promotion, 49.4 years; the planning sector, 48.6 years; IT and information communications, 47 years; and design also 47 years of age.
A similar age range of less than 50 years was reported by employees with higher management- level positions, including section chiefs and department heads.
The survey participants who had service jobs, however, reported much older ages, with the average of their answers coming out to 53.1 years of age. This pattern continued with employees from manufacturing and technology (52.8 years), sales and and sales management (51 years), and finance and statistics (50.2 years), showing an overall older age range.
On another note, 73 percent of the survey participants also said that they had thought about switching careers to jobs that guarantee employment even in retirement, such as civil service positions.
By Esther J. Kim (esther.jiyoung@koreabizwire.com)
