Singapore advances retirement age rise in wider senior jobs plan

Singapore’s government has accepted a six-part plan to widen employment choices for older workers, pairing an earlier increase in retirement and re-employment ages with more flexible jobs and stronger financial support.

Under the revised timetable, the retirement age will move from 64 to 65 and the re-employment age from 69 to 70 on January 1, 2029. This is a year ahead of schedule; the current age limits were introduced in July 2026.

The Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment released its recommendations on October 26, 2026, saying of the earlier age increases: “This gives senior workers greater assurance that they can continue working if they wish to.”

Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash explained at the October 26 press conference that the measures sought to help seniors find meaningful, sustainable employment through greater flexibility.

“For some seniors, this may mean continuing in the same job for longer. For others, it may mean moving into a different role, working at a different pace or adjusting work around changing personal circumstances.

“What matters is that seniors who wish to continue working have meaningful options to do so,” he said.

Choice, assurance and dignity were central to the workgroup’s approach, according to National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) deputy secretary-general Desmond Tan. He said choice must come with “personal readiness and responsibility”, adding that seniors could prepare for job changes by planning early and keeping their skills current.

Session-based and case-based roles illustrate how employment can be organised differently. Social service organisation Kampong Kapor Community Services has worked on these models with human resources firm Marsh People and Investments, formerly Mercer, to attract and retain experienced workers for whom traditional full-time employment may no longer be suitable.

This was among the approaches developed under the Alliance for Action on Empowering Multi-Stage Careers for Mature Workers, whose prototypes were designed, tested and refined by 30 organisations across six sectors over a year. Dinesh said the prototypes and solutions had benefited more than 1,600 senior workers.

To make flexi-load arrangements more widely available and help seniors return after a break from work, the group proposed a new Flexi-Load Programme and a dedicated programme office. The programme would replace the Part-Time Re-employment Grant, through which about 68,500 seniors and 7,800 employers have received support.

Lessons from Japan helped shape the programme following a workgroup study visit. Japan offers tailored help with later-life career transitions through its government-run network of Hello Work public employment offices, which provide job search and employment support. Their “lifelong active worker support desk” assists elderly jobseekers seeking re-employment, including flexi-load opportunities.

The Skills and Workforce Development Agency will lead the new office, working with NTUC and the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF). It will push for more ways to help employers meet the costs of developing and implementing flexi-load arrangements.

Creating these options may be difficult for businesses whose operations centre on full-time work. The workgroup recognised that additional resources would be needed to redesign jobs, systems and policies.

Flexi-load arrangements let employees vary their workload, with pay adjusted accordingly. Breaking jobs into smaller roles, known as job fractionalisation, could make it easier to match senior jobseekers with employers’ requirements.

Ministry of Manpower (MOM) data for 2024 showed that 74.5% of full-time resident employees aged 50–64 were provided with flexi-load arrangements. The proportions offered flexi-time and flexi-place arrangements were 85.5% and 78.7%, respectively.

Under MOM’s Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests, flexi-time covers options such as staggered starting and finishing times, while flexi-place permits work from different locations, including home. The report described both as fairly common, but identified a “significant gap” in flexi-load options for seniors.

Targeted financial help for lower-wage seniors would come through an enhanced Workfare Income Supplement and an updated Progressive Wage Credit Scheme. These changes aim to improve earnings and retirement adequacy while giving employers greater support to raise wages sustainably.

The workgroup said lower-wage seniors face greater difficulty securing adequate income and retirement finances. It stressed the importance of helping those who choose to continue working remain employed, productive and financially secure.

Employers would also receive continued support to retain senior staff through a new Re-Employment Credit from 2028. It would succeed the Senior Employment Credit (SEC), which expires at the end of 2027. The SEC currently offsets up to 7% of wages for employers hiring Singaporeans aged 60 and above who earn less than S$4,000 a month.

For workers continuing beyond the statutory retirement and re-employment ages, the group recommended increasing Earned Income Relief. Reducing their tax burden would leave them with more take-home pay and strengthen the incentive to remain employed.

Existing Earned Income Relief allows workers aged 60 and above to claim up to S$8,000, compared with S$6,000 for those aged 55–59. Singapore also leaves the first S$20,000 of a tax resident’s chargeable income untaxed.

When suitable re-employment cannot be found for an eligible worker reaching the minimum retirement age, the employer must make a one-off Employment Assistance Payment (EAP) as a last resort. This helps the worker financially while they look for another job.

The workgroup recommended updating the EAP’s minimum and maximum amounts to reflect wage growth in recent years and ensure support remains adequate for workers who are not re-employed.

Established in July 2025 to review and refresh Singapore’s senior employment strategy, the workgroup brings together representatives from MOM, NTUC and SNEF. Its recommendations seek to make jobs age-friendly and workplaces more diverse in age, supporting seniors who stay in work, return after a break or wish to work beyond the statutory retirement and re-employment ages.

Employers, industry and union representatives, workers, human resources professionals and academics were among more than 1,000 stakeholders consulted. Overseas study visits also informed the recommendations.

Details of implementation and grant parameters will be shared in the first half of 2027 during the Committee of Supply debates, when the Manpower Ministry presents its budget plans.

Source: The Straits Time