Job security could discourage early retirement — SSC

AMMAN — Improving job stability in the private sector could lead to a significant drop in early retirement rates, the Social Security Corporation (SSC) said on Sunday.

Early retirement accounted for around 19,000 of the 25,000 cases of retirement registered in 2014 and 2015, SSC Spokesperson Musa Sbeihi told The Jordan Times.

He explained that workers eligible for early retirement in the private sector often do not feel they can improve their working conditions or get new opportunities,  so they decide to leave the labour market early, causing "serious" repercussions on the economy.

The Social Security Law allows both male and female subscribers to ask for early retirement at the age of 45 if they have completed 25 years of SSC subscription. 

The previous law entitled workers to retire with a state pension after making SSC contributions for only 18 years for men and 15 years for women. 

Sbeihi noted that the majority of cases of early retirement over the past two years were exceptions to previous regulations, adding that the new rules will help reduce early retirement. 

"We encourage workers eligible for early retirement who are comfortable in their jobs to remain productive… Early retirement was initially made as an option for workers in hazardous professions in order to guarantee their safety," he said.

The corporation's awareness campaigns seek to build a culture that the role of the SSC is to provide insurance for old age and in cases of work-related disabilities, death, job loss and maternity leave.

Starting after Ramadan until the end of the year, the SSC awareness and inspection campaigns will target sectors with the most social security insurance evasions, including secretaries, private schools and shops, said Sbeihi.

The corporation will also launch an awareness campaign via a mobile station that will reach remote areas. 

Around 19,000 new obligatory and voluntary subscribers have joined the corporation over the first six months of this year, increasing the total number of subscribers to 1.185 million.

The corporation's insurance revenues are expected to reach JD1.4 billion this year, up from JD1.255 billion last year and JD1.18 billion in 2014. This increase is linked to the rise in salaries as well as the numbers of new subscribers, the SSC said.

Insurance surplus in 2015 reached JD461 million, registering a 17 per cent growth compared to JD393 million in 2014.