To retire or not to retire: Is there an option for older workers in Hong Kong?

Over the next thirty years, Hong Kong will have a rapidly ageing population. One possible consequence of this will be a labour shortage, which means that it will be essential to strike a proper balance between the amount of time spent in work and the amount spent in retirement in old age. The balance is determined by the interaction between the aspiration of workers, employers’ attitudes to older workers, as well as the productivity of the labour force. In this article, we examine the issue based on life‐course theory and we argue that the compartmentalization of education, work and retirement must be broken by changes in social policy. We identify three groups of future older adults in the coming three decades: those who may be forced to retire early in their fifties, those who plan to retire in their sixties, and those who will continue to work until they can no longer work. The current situations of these groups are described, and social policies that are related to retirement pension scheme, age discrimination, life‐long education, and flexible work arrangements are suggested to weaken the age structuring of education and employment institutions. Our ultimate objective is to create a societal environment in which older workers have a real option either to work or to retire in the coming decades. Copyright © 2005 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.