Retirement Age: When Must You Retire?

 

Eventually, everyone needs to stop working. Some people prefer to retire early, while others choose to work for as long as possible. Whatever your preference, it's important to know your rights and options.

Retirement Age

Labour laws don’t directly address retirement age. However, they do state that no one should face unfair discrimination because of their age. This means that the employer and employee must agree on a retirement age.

Here are three situations you might encounter:

·        Your employment contract requires you to retire at a certain age.

·        You and your employer have agreed on a retirement age, or there is a company norm.

·        There is no mention of retirement in your contract and no agreement on retirement age.

If your employment contract specifies a retirement age, then you must retire at that age without needing additional notice from your employer.

If the retirement age isn’t in the contract but is agreed upon or follows company norms, your employer can give you notice to retire. The notice period will match the termination notice period in your contract.

Organizational norms for retirement age are not conclusive. Generally, "normal" retirement ages are 55, 60, or 65. However, this can vary and might be indicated by:

·        Company provident or pension fund rules (though not definitive).

·        Company policies.

If there’s no retirement age mentioned in your contract and no organizational norm, you can keep working until you can’t perform your job effectively. Your employer can only terminate your contract for reasons like misconduct, operational requirements, or incompetence, following labour laws and your contract’s procedures. Courts have ruled that it’s unfair discrimination to terminate employment solely because of age.

Working Beyond Retirement Age

There’s no legal certainty about the rights of employees who work past retirement age. Therefore, it’s best for employers and employees to clearly define employment terms after the retirement age, such as the duration of continued work and notice required for termination.