'Many Grassroots Elderly Can't Afford To Retire'

A grassroots organisation on Sunday said almost seven out of ten working elderly people do not see retirement as an option because they won’t be able to make ends meet.

The Society for Community Organisation said that’s according to a survey of a hundred underprivileged senior citizens it conducted from November to February, with most of the interviewees working long hours as cleaners or security guards.

Results showed that the elderly earned an average income of HK$10,536 per month, and they spent HK$9,235 on rent, utilities and food.

The society's Ng Wai-tung said with little to no savings, more than 60 percent of the elderly said they wanted to keep working for as long as possible.

“It's quite a sad situation since we hope that the elderly have dignity to make the decision to carry on with their jobs, or to decide when and how they retire,” he said.

"But we found 67 percent [cannot make] their own decision... because they faced a difficult situation, [like] very high rents and medical expenses."

An elderly woman who called herself Lee Fong said she thought about retiring from her job as a hospital cleaner, but gave up the idea as she said the comprehensive social security assistance would only be enough to pay her rent.

The 72-year-old said she hoped the authorities would increase the income limit for the old age living allowance, which is currently HK$10,430 per month, as she is earning HK$12 too much to apply for it.

Ng called on the authorities to offer better protection for working senior citizens, by for example setting up an inter-departmental committee to review social welfare measures and formulate elderly-friendly employment policies.