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Shura Council Mulling to Extend Saudi Retirement Age | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Saudi Arabia’s King Salman attends a session of Saudi Shura Council in Riyadh, December 23, 2015. REUTERS/Bandar al-Jaloud/Saudi Royal Court/Handout


Riyadh- The Shura Council is to vote on Monday on key amendments to the Civil Service Retirement Law after hearing the views of members of the council. One of these proposals was to postpone the age of retirement to 62 (Hijri years) instead of 60, knowing that the council discussed this topic several times recently without reaching a final decision.

Dr. Sami Zaidan, a member of the Finance Committee at the Shoura Council, revealed that there are various points of view regarding the age of retirement in Saudi Arabia. Zaidan added that the current retirement age is 60 which is a young age when the citizen is still usually capable of working.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper Dr. Zaidan said that the effective age of retiring is a critical topic as some encourage early retirement because it permits the youth involvement in the labor market while others discourage it considering that the employee is being forced to move to the private sector or another workplace when he still has a lot to give.

The Shura Council member added that the bill will not be passed without the majority’s approval, 76 votes.

Dr. Khalil Kurdi, a member of the Finance Committee, urged the extension of retirement age to 65 as this will ease the pressure on the state budget, knowing that Saudi Arabia is one of few countries that have an early retirement age, (60 Hijri years, 58 calendar years).