Our Senior Discount Club members might remember the good old days when men looked forward to retiring at 65 and receiving the Age Pension, while women's pension age was set at 60.

However, times have changed over the past decade, with the introduction of incremental rises in the pension age, taking it to 67 for all Australians from 1 July 2023.

But how would you feel if the pension age was raised even further, to 70?

Starting next month, the eligibility age for the Age Pension will be raised to 67. Credit: Shutterstock.

Backtracking a little, it was the Rudd Labor government who legislated the pension age increase to 67. However, in May 2014, the then Treasurer Joe Hockey made waves by announcing the pension age would rise to 70 by 2035, a proposition that was met with public outcry and faced serious backlash.

Remember the famous slogan: 'Only a bloke who's worked in an office his whole life would think you can work until you're 70'?

Years later, Scott Morrison officially dropped the age-70 target as a Liberal policy. Micheal McCormack, his deputy, said it was 'probably a step too far', adding, 'I think if you are a tradie, or a brickie, or a shearer in rural and regional Australia, you don't want some suit in Canberra telling you you're going to have to work until you're 70'.

While many can rejoice for now, as all Australians will soon have the same retirement age for the first time in over a decade—there is no guarantee that the debate over raising the pension age is over.

Recently, a group of academics revisited the statistics and released a report suggesting that further pension age increases may be warranted to ensure the country has a sufficient supply of workers in the future.

Macquarie University Business School Professor Hanlin Shang and his co-authors recommend three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, stepping up to 68 by 2030, 69 by 2036, and 70 by 2050.

The proposal is based on factors such as Australia's low birth rate, which impacts the number of workers available to sustain an ageing population.

Professor Shang says, 'Fewer people in the working group and more in retirement will make the old age dependency ratio (OADR) higher. What this means is there are fewer working people to support elderly people, and with more elderly people in the population, this will create a burden for the government pension system.'

Unsurprisingly, the proposal has been met with criticism. One Australian worker told a news outlet, 'Try and be a tradie at 70,' while a retired nurse added, 'People in their 60s are exhausted. I've got back pain from nursing. I cannot work anymore. People should not have to work in old age.'

In response, National Seniors Australia, a non-profit membership and advocacy organisation, has firmly opposed the proposal to increase the pension age to 70. They argue that numerous individuals leave the workforce due to poor health and are unable to sustain employment. Instead, they propose an alternative solution: providing incentives to those who wish to work for a longer period.

Their campaign, known as Let Pensioners Work, advocates for a reduction in the income test taper rates. This will enable individuals to retain a larger portion of their pension if they opt to continue working. National Seniors Australia believes this approach is more equitable than raising the pension age, as it recognises and rewards individuals who have the desire and necessity to work.

As Chief Advocate Ian Henschke recently told Radio 4BC, 'If you are on a pension, you want to keep working; let them work, and it'll be a win for the economy, a win for the pensioners themselves, and a win for the government'.

Key Takeaways

• The pension age for all Australians is set to be 67, effective on 1 July 2023, after incremental rises were introduced a decade ago.
• In 2014, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced plans to further raise the pension age to 70 by 2035, but this was met with public backlash and was later dropped as Liberal policy.
• A group of academics have recently released a report suggesting three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, reaching 70 by 2050, to ensure a sufficient supply of workers in the future.
• National Seniors Australia, a not-for-profit membership and advocacy organisation, rejects calls for raising the pension age to 70 and has instead launched the Let Pensioners Work campaign, advocating for reduced income test taper rates to provide incentives for those who choose to work longer.

Members, we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter. Should the Australian pension age remain at 67, be raised to 70 as proposed, or revert to 65 as previously set? Are there any alternative suggestions that would better suit the needs of the ageing population? Share your opinions in the comments section below, and let's talk!

 

[Joseph Gallina]

It is not so much the raising of the age; it is more about what we are used to and do not like change. A complaint is a human response to the indoctrination we are akin to.
People complain about old age when work is an issue, and suddenly, everyone has ailments. My ailments started long before I was sixty-five. I did not sit down and worked till I was sixty-eight, and employment ceased as the business was sold off.
I agree that men and women should retire at the same age. I could never understand why women were retiring at sixty while most men burnt their butt off working till sixty-five and often dying a couple of years later while women lived a decade or two longer.
There has to be a new benchmark as the human race lives longer and healthier. Not for the convenience of the government and their need to pay retirees a livable pension regardless of super.
In another decade or so, many more people will be retiring with super as the education bites, and people understand the need for this investment. Coming from a country with a different system, I was not so fortunate.
So my answer is basically to stop moaning and move with the times. Seventy seems a healthy age. The problem and acceptability are where does it change? Do you do it in one leap or in increments over a period of five years? Whichever way it goes, it is going to have its moaners and groaners, mostly by those who have not prepared for retirement, and suddenly it was on their doorstep.
Happy retirement, peeps; no matter your health or financial situation, you have a life, and most have a family. Enjoy.

Hello PeeBo, this is very true and of course it will change again. This is the reason why my initial post was about people directing their energies towards looking after their health many years before they retire and create some health reserve for themselves. Of course, we are sorry for those that can't work, and the various issues people will have with later retirement, but as we say, it's a change that we can't avoid as society, governments and lifestyles change. Stating that we now live longer does not cut it either. The fact is that diseases and illnesses are on the rise and will affect many of us in our senior years. Retirement won't be the issue then it will be our health. So, we need to concern ourselves with that equally as much. Thats why my posts on a regular basis are about health and fitness so we can enjoy whatever years we have left.

 

[Rujam]

Our Senior Discount Club members might remember the good old days when men looked forward to retiring at 65 and receiving the Age Pension, while women's pension age was set at 60.

However, times have changed over the past decade, with the introduction of incremental rises in the pension age, taking it to 67 for all Australians from 1 July 2023.

But how would you feel if the pension age was raised even further, to 70?

View attachment 23327

Starting next month, the eligibility age for the Age Pension will be raised to 67. Credit: Shutterstock.

Backtracking a little, it was the Rudd Labor government who legislated the pension age increase to 67. However, in May 2014, the then Treasurer Joe Hockey made waves by announcing the pension age would rise to 70 by 2035, a proposition that was met with public outcry and faced serious backlash.

Remember the famous slogan: 'Only a bloke who's worked in an office his whole life would think you can work until you're 70'?

Years later, Scott Morrison officially dropped the age-70 target as a Liberal policy. Micheal McCormack, his deputy, said it was 'probably a step too far', adding, 'I think if you are a tradie, or a brickie, or a shearer in rural and regional Australia, you don't want some suit in Canberra telling you you're going to have to work until you're 70'.

While many can rejoice for now, as all Australians will soon have the same retirement age for the first time in over a decade—there is no guarantee that the debate over raising the pension age is over.

Recently, a group of academics revisited the statistics and released a report suggesting that further pension age increases may be warranted to ensure the country has a sufficient supply of workers in the future.

Macquarie University Business School Professor Hanlin Shang and his co-authors recommend three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, stepping up to 68 by 2030, 69 by 2036, and 70 by 2050.

The proposal is based on factors such as Australia's low birth rate, which impacts the number of workers available to sustain an ageing population.

Professor Shang says, 'Fewer people in the working group and more in retirement will make the old age dependency ratio (OADR) higher. What this means is there are fewer working people to support elderly people, and with more elderly people in the population, this will create a burden for the government pension system.'

Unsurprisingly, the proposal has been met with criticism. One Australian worker told a news outlet, 'Try and be a tradie at 70,' while a retired nurse added, 'People in their 60s are exhausted. I've got back pain from nursing. I cannot work anymore. People should not have to work in old age.'

In response, National Seniors Australia, a non-profit membership and advocacy organisation, has firmly opposed the proposal to increase the pension age to 70. They argue that numerous individuals leave the workforce due to poor health and are unable to sustain employment. Instead, they propose an alternative solution: providing incentives to those who wish to work for a longer period.

Their campaign, known as Let Pensioners Work, advocates for a reduction in the income test taper rates. This will enable individuals to retain a larger portion of their pension if they opt to continue working. National Seniors Australia believes this approach is more equitable than raising the pension age, as it recognises and rewards individuals who have the desire and necessity to work.

As Chief Advocate Ian Henschke recently told Radio 4BC, 'If you are on a pension, you want to keep working; let them work, and it'll be a win for the economy, a win for the pensioners themselves, and a win for the government'.

Key Takeaways

• The pension age for all Australians is set to be 67, effective on 1 July 2023, after incremental rises were introduced a decade ago.
• In 2014, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced plans to further raise the pension age to 70 by 2035, but this was met with public backlash and was later dropped as Liberal policy.
• A group of academics have recently released a report suggesting three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, reaching 70 by 2050, to ensure a sufficient supply of workers in the future.
• National Seniors Australia, a not-for-profit membership and advocacy organisation, rejects calls for raising the pension age to 70 and has instead launched the Let Pensioners Work campaign, advocating for reduced income test taper rates to provide incentives for those who choose to work longer.

Members, we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter. Should the Australian pension age remain at 67, be raised to 70 as proposed, or revert to 65 as previously set? Are there any alternative suggestions that would better suit the needs of the ageing population? Share your opinions in the comments section below, and let's talk!

It depends on the type of jobs people do. If you are a professional person like a doctor, dentist, office worker, or psychologist you can work to whatever age but people who do manual labour and long-distance driving should retire at 65.

 

[Kay Stammers]

Our Senior Discount Club members might remember the good old days when men looked forward to retiring at 65 and receiving the Age Pension, while women's pension age was set at 60.

However, times have changed over the past decade, with the introduction of incremental rises in the pension age, taking it to 67 for all Australians from 1 July 2023.

But how would you feel if the pension age was raised even further, to 70?

View attachment 23327

Starting next month, the eligibility age for the Age Pension will be raised to 67. Credit: Shutterstock.

Backtracking a little, it was the Rudd Labor government who legislated the pension age increase to 67. However, in May 2014, the then Treasurer Joe Hockey made waves by announcing the pension age would rise to 70 by 2035, a proposition that was met with public outcry and faced serious backlash.

Remember the famous slogan: 'Only a bloke who's worked in an office his whole life would think you can work until you're 70'?

Years later, Scott Morrison officially dropped the age-70 target as a Liberal policy. Micheal McCormack, his deputy, said it was 'probably a step too far', adding, 'I think if you are a tradie, or a brickie, or a shearer in rural and regional Australia, you don't want some suit in Canberra telling you you're going to have to work until you're 70'.

While many can rejoice for now, as all Australians will soon have the same retirement age for the first time in over a decade—there is no guarantee that the debate over raising the pension age is over.

Recently, a group of academics revisited the statistics and released a report suggesting that further pension age increases may be warranted to ensure the country has a sufficient supply of workers in the future.

Macquarie University Business School Professor Hanlin Shang and his co-authors recommend three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, stepping up to 68 by 2030, 69 by 2036, and 70 by 2050.

The proposal is based on factors such as Australia's low birth rate, which impacts the number of workers available to sustain an ageing population.

Professor Shang says, 'Fewer people in the working group and more in retirement will make the old age dependency ratio (OADR) higher. What this means is there are fewer working people to support elderly people, and with more elderly people in the population, this will create a burden for the government pension system.'

Unsurprisingly, the proposal has been met with criticism. One Australian worker told a news outlet, 'Try and be a tradie at 70,' while a retired nurse added, 'People in their 60s are exhausted. I've got back pain from nursing. I cannot work anymore. People should not have to work in old age.'

In response, National Seniors Australia, a non-profit membership and advocacy organisation, has firmly opposed the proposal to increase the pension age to 70. They argue that numerous individuals leave the workforce due to poor health and are unable to sustain employment. Instead, they propose an alternative solution: providing incentives to those who wish to work for a longer period.

Their campaign, known as Let Pensioners Work, advocates for a reduction in the income test taper rates. This will enable individuals to retain a larger portion of their pension if they opt to continue working. National Seniors Australia believes this approach is more equitable than raising the pension age, as it recognises and rewards individuals who have the desire and necessity to work.

As Chief Advocate Ian Henschke recently told Radio 4BC, 'If you are on a pension, you want to keep working; let them work, and it'll be a win for the economy, a win for the pensioners themselves, and a win for the government'.

Key Takeaways

• The pension age for all Australians is set to be 67, effective on 1 July 2023, after incremental rises were introduced a decade ago.
• In 2014, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced plans to further raise the pension age to 70 by 2035, but this was met with public backlash and was later dropped as Liberal policy.
• A group of academics have recently released a report suggesting three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, reaching 70 by 2050, to ensure a sufficient supply of workers in the future.
• National Seniors Australia, a not-for-profit membership and advocacy organisation, rejects calls for raising the pension age to 70 and has instead launched the Let Pensioners Work campaign, advocating for reduced income test taper rates to provide incentives for those who choose to work longer.

Members, we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter. Should the Australian pension age remain at 67, be raised to 70 as proposed, or revert to 65 as previously set? Are there any alternative suggestions that would better suit the needs of the ageing population? Share your opinions in the comments section below, and let's talk!

 

[Kay Stammers]

Discrimination on so many levels in this world. I can now understand what I have viewed in science-fiction over the past years will come to fruition. In order to control we will need measures and the measures will definitely be popular and they will be unfair to those that have contributed and played the game of the leaders.
As a 64yo nurse I have witnessed many people exited the workforce because of A & P problems they will either be under NDIA or under Aged Care Pension scheme which is still a burden to our society. Of course we still have not discussed the cost of implementation of the deemed societal needs eg medicare, transportation, good roads, education, housing and the list goes on.
So how can we fixed the problem????
I witness first-hand the elderly living in 3rd world conditions within this so called rich Australia. It appears it is not working. We all need to go back to the basics and stop the greed. Let's have a national forum on this topic.
No-one should be left behind, a great statement but so untrue in 2023.

 

[Maurice_McGahey]

Our Senior Discount Club members might remember the good old days when men looked forward to retiring at 65 and receiving the Age Pension, while women's pension age was set at 60.

However, times have changed over the past decade, with the introduction of incremental rises in the pension age, taking it to 67 for all Australians from 1 July 2023.

But how would you feel if the pension age was raised even further, to 70?

View attachment 23327

Starting next month, the eligibility age for the Age Pension will be raised to 67. Credit: Shutterstock.

Backtracking a little, it was the Rudd Labor government who legislated the pension age increase to 67. However, in May 2014, the then Treasurer Joe Hockey made waves by announcing the pension age would rise to 70 by 2035, a proposition that was met with public outcry and faced serious backlash.

Remember the famous slogan: 'Only a bloke who's worked in an office his whole life would think you can work until you're 70'?

Years later, Scott Morrison officially dropped the age-70 target as a Liberal policy. Micheal McCormack, his deputy, said it was 'probably a step too far', adding, 'I think if you are a tradie, or a brickie, or a shearer in rural and regional Australia, you don't want some suit in Canberra telling you you're going to have to work until you're 70'.

While many can rejoice for now, as all Australians will soon have the same retirement age for the first time in over a decade—there is no guarantee that the debate over raising the pension age is over.

Recently, a group of academics revisited the statistics and released a report suggesting that further pension age increases may be warranted to ensure the country has a sufficient supply of workers in the future.

Macquarie University Business School Professor Hanlin Shang and his co-authors recommend three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, stepping up to 68 by 2030, 69 by 2036, and 70 by 2050.

The proposal is based on factors such as Australia's low birth rate, which impacts the number of workers available to sustain an ageing population.

Professor Shang says, 'Fewer people in the working group and more in retirement will make the old age dependency ratio (OADR) higher. What this means is there are fewer working people to support elderly people, and with more elderly people in the population, this will create a burden for the government pension system.'

Unsurprisingly, the proposal has been met with criticism. One Australian worker told a news outlet, 'Try and be a tradie at 70,' while a retired nurse added, 'People in their 60s are exhausted. I've got back pain from nursing. I cannot work anymore. People should not have to work in old age.'

In response, National Seniors Australia, a non-profit membership and advocacy organisation, has firmly opposed the proposal to increase the pension age to 70. They argue that numerous individuals leave the workforce due to poor health and are unable to sustain employment. Instead, they propose an alternative solution: providing incentives to those who wish to work for a longer period.

Their campaign, known as Let Pensioners Work, advocates for a reduction in the income test taper rates. This will enable individuals to retain a larger portion of their pension if they opt to continue working. National Seniors Australia believes this approach is more equitable than raising the pension age, as it recognises and rewards individuals who have the desire and necessity to work.

As Chief Advocate Ian Henschke recently told Radio 4BC, 'If you are on a pension, you want to keep working; let them work, and it'll be a win for the economy, a win for the pensioners themselves, and a win for the government'.

Key Takeaways

• The pension age for all Australians is set to be 67, effective on 1 July 2023, after incremental rises were introduced a decade ago.
• In 2014, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced plans to further raise the pension age to 70 by 2035, but this was met with public backlash and was later dropped as Liberal policy.
• A group of academics have recently released a report suggesting three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, reaching 70 by 2050, to ensure a sufficient supply of workers in the future.
• National Seniors Australia, a not-for-profit membership and advocacy organisation, rejects calls for raising the pension age to 70 and has instead launched the Let Pensioners Work campaign, advocating for reduced income test taper rates to provide incentives for those who choose to work longer.

Members, we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter. Should the Australian pension age remain at 67, be raised to 70 as proposed, or revert to 65 as previously set? Are there any alternative suggestions that would better suit the needs of the ageing population? Share your opinions in the comments section below, and let's talk!

In 1943, during the Second World War, Labor Prime Minister John Curtin fore saw thousands of battle trained and hardened Australians coming home to mass unemployment and social dysfunction. This was foresight rarely seen in politicians then and never seen in current times.

Australians had suffered from the Great Depression right up to when their young men were stripped from the streets and land to provide cannon fodder, first in far away Europe and then throughout Asia. It should not be forgotten that the Second World War just 40 years after the first, was a direct result of the Capitalist yoke that had been placed on Germany. Germans are very like the British. They hate corruption! But when the strong European nations demanded economy crippling reparations from Germany, and Germans found themselves in super inflation ... well, even crazies like the German fascists looked good as leaders. It is unlikely that Japan would have undertaken its imperialistic invasions if the "democratic" half of the World were not busy with the fascists in Europe.

Australia had not recovered from the Great Depression when Australian swaggies, farmers and under-employed or unemployed factory workers saw a chance to improve their lot by signing up. Not many young men were listening to the old soldiers from the Great War. Ironically, the British, Canadians and New Zealanders had put the Great Depression behind them when their governments started "printing money" to fund nation building projects like mining and manufacturing (The UK), forestry, road and rail infrastructure (Canada and New Zealand). Australia believed the USA that this was "socialism" and left her young men to wander the nation looking for piecemeal low paid work.

John Curtin and his Cabinet knew that the wars in Europe and the Pacific would be over within a few years. Thousand of young men would be returning to Australia to find that most jobs were taken by women and expected to take care of themselves after the horrors of war. Curtin, Ben Chifley and even the new Opposition Leader Bob Menzies agreed that these returned soldiers, sailors and airmen must be nurtured back into Australian Society. The Social Services Fund was created in 1943 as a trust account under the Audit Act 1901. The Fund was funded by a 7.5% take off of the personal income tax and company profit tax. So the Fund caused no increase in taxes, it was just a repurposing of taxes already levied. The legislation was amended to support the Widows Pension (of which the War had produced many), unemployed and of course aged persons (retirement set at 65 years). It is worth noting that most of our British Commonwealth nation brethren already had aged, widows and unemployment pensions in their social systems. But in Australia, the United States mantra of "worker are lazy and must be forced to work" had slavishly aped by the rich and powerful.


Here it might be interesting to look at what happened to the USA when its soldiers started returning after the Second World War. One group were repatriated to the West Coast California. There they found that their demobilization pay was enough to buy a Harley Davidson motorcycle ... and so the Hells Angels and soon, other outlaw bike clubs were born. Google up the town name of Hollister if you want to find out more on that "social" adaptation. Bank robberies increased exponentially. Los Angeles became the "bank robbery capital of the World." There was a bank being robbed ever 7 minutes. The US servicemen not only came home to find women had taken available jobs, but Mexicans had taken the chance find work in their still wealthy, Northern neighbor. Fortunately, the US governments started to get their war production back to peacetime production. American V8s became so cheap that even my farming Father could afford a 1956 Chev Bel Air in 1962.

Back to Australia. In 1950 the Social Services Fund was worth 100,000,000 Australian pounds! Because the able bodied Australian service people had come back and in a short time found productive jobs. Australia was building her new Holden and Ford motor vehicles and mining and farming were booming again. Trade lanes were open and wool, wheat and dairy products were travelling to foreign markets again. The fear of the bankers that unemployment benefits would have the workforce sitting in the pub was shown for what it was.

It has been calculated by some economists that if the Social Services fund was still alive today, the entire working population could go on the "dole" and it would still grow through its investments. But that was never to be. Shortly after the Liberal Malcolm Fraser ousted Gough Whitlam as Prime Minister, he raided the Social Welfare Fund to fund his policies. It could be postulated that the money was stolen. But the Liberal-National Coalition Government of the day made the rules ... and Labor never held them to account when they finally made it back into the Treasury seats. During John Howard's term as Prime Minister (1996 - 2007) Howard legislated to have the Social Services fund become part of General Revenue. That is, Howard stopped Curtin's and Chifley's Social Services Fund from receiving any more funding and raided what was left.

Remember "Kevin for 07" ... Yes the Labor Prime Minister (who looked suspiciously like a Liberal Prime Minister) legislated the Social Welfare Fund out of existence. The Liberal Party had been trying to remove a social welfare net since the mid 1970s, but it was a Labor Prime Minister that finally threw the last shovel of dirt on its coffin. I can see Kevin Rudd's purpose. The Labor Party had been embracing neoliberal economic policies for some time ... "We will never get elected unless we look like Liberals!" ... but WHAT IF a progressive future Prime Minister said. "We NEED that Social Services Fund! You there ... Treasury, find out where the money from The Social Services Fund went and demand it back! ... WITH INTEREST!!!" So Rudd closed that door.

Some might wonder what neoliberalist economic policies are. The term "neoliberalism was first used by Austrian economists Fredrik von Hayek and Ludwig Von Mises in 1938. Its simple policy is "Let the Market decide." But wealthy capitalists (and fascists) around the World have clung to the policy like dirt on an 1900s 11 year old miner. "Let the market decide ... unless my wealth is suffering ... and if that happens pour as much government largess into my factories until my wealth is growing again! ... NO! That's not socialism!!! Socialism is when you support the poor and workers!"

So now you know why "The Big End of Town" hates Social Welfare Funds, unemployment benefits, socialised health benefits and ESPECIALLY, service and aged pensions. "That is money that could be going to our businesses. ie $30 million to Rupert Murdoch's Australian media for showing women's sport that they were already showing ... $444 million for a climate change denial group of mining billionaires that called themselves The Great Barrier Reef Foundation (we think that was a wedding anniversary gift from Malcolm Turnbull to his wife) ... payments to Joe Hockey for private parties in the USA ... The list goes on. Yep, those neoliberalists certainly hate government money being paid out to anyone ... except themselves!

 

[Dizzy]

Our Senior Discount Club members might remember the good old days when men looked forward to retiring at 65 and receiving the Age Pension, while women's pension age was set at 60.

However, times have changed over the past decade, with the introduction of incremental rises in the pension age, taking it to 67 for all Australians from 1 July 2023.

But how would you feel if the pension age was raised even further, to 70?

View attachment 23327

Starting next month, the eligibility age for the Age Pension will be raised to 67. Credit: Shutterstock.

Backtracking a little, it was the Rudd Labor government who legislated the pension age increase to 67. However, in May 2014, the then Treasurer Joe Hockey made waves by announcing the pension age would rise to 70 by 2035, a proposition that was met with public outcry and faced serious backlash.

Remember the famous slogan: 'Only a bloke who's worked in an office his whole life would think you can work until you're 70'?

Years later, Scott Morrison officially dropped the age-70 target as a Liberal policy. Micheal McCormack, his deputy, said it was 'probably a step too far', adding, 'I think if you are a tradie, or a brickie, or a shearer in rural and regional Australia, you don't want some suit in Canberra telling you you're going to have to work until you're 70'.

While many can rejoice for now, as all Australians will soon have the same retirement age for the first time in over a decade—there is no guarantee that the debate over raising the pension age is over.

Recently, a group of academics revisited the statistics and released a report suggesting that further pension age increases may be warranted to ensure the country has a sufficient supply of workers in the future.

Macquarie University Business School Professor Hanlin Shang and his co-authors recommend three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, stepping up to 68 by 2030, 69 by 2036, and 70 by 2050.

The proposal is based on factors such as Australia's low birth rate, which impacts the number of workers available to sustain an ageing population.

Professor Shang says, 'Fewer people in the working group and more in retirement will make the old age dependency ratio (OADR) higher. What this means is there are fewer working people to support elderly people, and with more elderly people in the population, this will create a burden for the government pension system.'

Unsurprisingly, the proposal has been met with criticism. One Australian worker told a news outlet, 'Try and be a tradie at 70,' while a retired nurse added, 'People in their 60s are exhausted. I've got back pain from nursing. I cannot work anymore. People should not have to work in old age.'

In response, National Seniors Australia, a non-profit membership and advocacy organisation, has firmly opposed the proposal to increase the pension age to 70. They argue that numerous individuals leave the workforce due to poor health and are unable to sustain employment. Instead, they propose an alternative solution: providing incentives to those who wish to work for a longer period.

Their campaign, known as Let Pensioners Work, advocates for a reduction in the income test taper rates. This will enable individuals to retain a larger portion of their pension if they opt to continue working. National Seniors Australia believes this approach is more equitable than raising the pension age, as it recognises and rewards individuals who have the desire and necessity to work.

As Chief Advocate Ian Henschke recently told Radio 4BC, 'If you are on a pension, you want to keep working; let them work, and it'll be a win for the economy, a win for the pensioners themselves, and a win for the government'.

Key Takeaways

• The pension age for all Australians is set to be 67, effective on 1 July 2023, after incremental rises were introduced a decade ago.
• In 2014, then Treasurer Joe Hockey announced plans to further raise the pension age to 70 by 2035, but this was met with public backlash and was later dropped as Liberal policy.
• A group of academics have recently released a report suggesting three more pension-age increases over the next 27 years, reaching 70 by 2050, to ensure a sufficient supply of workers in the future.
• National Seniors Australia, a not-for-profit membership and advocacy organisation, rejects calls for raising the pension age to 70 and has instead launched the Let Pensioners Work campaign, advocating for reduced income test taper rates to provide incentives for those who choose to work longer.

Members, we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter. Should the Australian pension age remain at 67, be raised to 70 as proposed, or revert to 65 as previously set? Are there any alternative suggestions that would better suit the needs of the ageing population? Share your opinions in the comments section below, and let's talk!

This type of entitlement annoys the hell out of me. Those of us who have no home and/or pay rent. Have no assets or investments. No super or savings. Have worked hard all our lives at blue collar shift work low wages. Many of us were also losers due to DV or spouses taking it all. We have not benefitted from the “pension” increases which were generated by low interest rates and generous government concessions during the past ten years and have had meagre pension increases and no help from government. Wanna swap? Quit being so greedy.