At what age does the common individual retire in high-income international locations? How lengthy is the common interval of retirement? The OECD collects this data. Right here’s a trimmed down desk with a choice of international locations.
You’ll be able to see from the primary two columns of knowledge that the common age of labor market exit for US women and men is a shade underneath 65 years. That is decrease than Japan and Korea, and curiously, decrease than Sweden as effectively. The international locations with the earliest common ages of labor market exit appear to be France, Spain and Greece at lower than 61 years, with Italy additionally on the low aspect.
The final two columns of knowledge present anticipated years in retirement. For the USA, that is 18.6 years for males and 21.3 years for ladies, largely reflecting the longer common life expectations for ladies. The shortest anticipated retirements are in Japan and Korea. Curiously, Sweden has a later common age of retirement than the US but additionally an extended anticipated retirement–which is feasible due to longer life expectations in Sweden. The longest retirement durations appear to be within the international locations with the bottom retirement ages, like France, Greece, and Spain, the place it is not uncommon for males to have 23 years in retirement and ladies 27 years.
Over time, the common age of retirement within the US has adopted a U-shaped sample over final 50 years, first dropping by about three yr after which rising again near the sooner degree. For males, the OECD information reveals that common age of retirement for males was 65.5 years in 1970, 63.8 years in 1980, 62.4 years in 1990, 62.5 years in 2000, 62.9 years in 2010, after which 64.9 years in 2020. For the anticipated time in retirement, the US follows reveals a considerable rise from 1970 up by way of 2012, however a gradual decline since then. For males, the OECD information reveals 12.8 years of anticipated retirement in 1970, 15.0 years in 1980, 17.0 years in 1990, 18.2 years in 2000, 19.6 years in 2010, after which–after peaking at 20.1 years of anticipated years of retirement in 2012–a gradual decline to 18.6 anticipated years of retirement in 2020.
In a big-picture sense, that is according to a long-term sample of US males over age 65 reducing their labor power participation in the long term, however with an upward shift in labor market participation within the final 20 years or so. From the Our World in Information web site:
On condition that the US has a comparatively late age of anticipated retirement and comparatively brief interval of anticipated retirement, one would possibly anticipate that the US Social Safety system of presidency pensions can be in comparatively good monetary form in comparison with another international locations, however this doesn’t appear to be appropriate. Contemplate this desk from the Mercer CFA Institute International Pension Index 2022, which ranks pension methods throughout 44 international locations for adequacy, sustainability, and integrity. (“Integrity” refers to a mix of points associated to regulation, governance, safety, communication, and working prices.) The US system does pretty effectively for adequacy, however not so effectively on the opposite measures. Of the international locations listed above, Netherlands and Denmark are considered grade A methods. The US general class with international locations like France and Spain. These international locations rank greater than the US on “adequacy” of advantages, with their decrease retirement ages and longer anticipated durations of retirement, however rank decrease than the US on the monetary “sustainability” of the advantages.
Because the US offers with the monetary penalties of an getting old inhabitants, it appears applicable that a part of the reply will contain individuals working longer on common. However different elements of the reply may also contain extra financing for the system as an entire and extra help for the aged poor.
