Nearly 1 in 3 senior pensioners look to employment to make ends meet

Almost 1 in 3 senior pension recipients expressed a desire or need to work to cover their living expenses, data showed Monday.

According to data released by Statistics Korea, within a demographic of 7.78 million people aged between 55 and 79 eligible for pensions as of May this year, 61.6 percent expressed a preference for employment, with the largest portion of them at 31.9 percent seeking additional income to sustain their living.

Approximately 24 percent of those who expressed a desire to work did so for the joy of labor itself, while 3.2 percent found their lives too monotonous. About 2 percent mentioned maintaining their health as the motivation.

In fact, 50.2 percent of pension recipients (3.9 million) were currently employed, indicating an increase of 1.22 million employees compared to 2018.

On the contrary, among the senior population of 7.69 million who were not eligible for pensions, over 75 percent expressed a desire to work, with almost 68 percent of them employed, as of May 2023. A significant portion, 44.6 percent, cited the need to cover their cost of living as the motivation for working.

The statistical agency disclosed that those aged over 65 received an average pension of 600,000 won ($444) per month in 2021, up from 423,000 won in 2016.