Majority of Jordanians support early retirement — poll

AMMAN — Eighty-seven per cent of Jordanians support early retirement and want the option to remain available for all as it is now, according to the results of an opinion poll released on Tuesday.

More than 2,000 Jordanians were polled in a survey conducted by the Social Security Corporate (SSC) over a one-month period about their opinion of early retirement, according to SSC Spokesperson Musa Sbeihi.

Describing the survey results as “disappointing”, Sbeihi, noted that early retirement has a negative impact on the SSC and the pensioners concerned as it entails a 20 per cent deduction on their pension.

According to SSC figures, 73,500 of the corporation’s 166,000 pensioners are early retirees, constituting 43 per cent of the total.

“If individuals continue seeking early retirement, this would deplete the corporation’s financial resources,” Sbeihi told The Jordan Times over the phone, explaining that it should only be encouraged for those who work in high risk jobs or are forced to leave their jobs for certain reasons.

Of the 12,000 individuals who retired in 2014, approximately two-thirds requested early retirement, the spokesperson said, noting that both male and female subscribers can ask for early retirement at the age of 45 if they have completed 25 years of subscription.

They can also request it at the age of 50, if they have been subscribed for 19 years.

The SSC said the monthly cost of all pensions recently stood at JD55.5 million, of which 54 per cent (JD31 million) goes for early retirees.