Denmark is set to have the highest retirement age in Europe after Parliament adopted a law raised to 70 by 2040.
Since 2006, Denmark has tied its official retirement age to life expectancy and revised it every five years. He is currently 67 years old, but the number of cases rose to 68 in 2030 and 69 in 2035.
The retirement age of 70 applies to all people born after December 31, 1970.
The new law opposed 81 and 21 votes on Thursday.
But last year, Social Democrat Prime Minister Mette Fredericksen said the principle of slide scale will eventually be renegotiated.
“I no longer believe that we should automatically increase the retirement age,” she said, adding that in the party’s eyes, “people can’t continue saying they have to work for more than a year.”
Tommas Jensen, a 47-year-old rooferd, told Danish media that the change was “irrational.”
“We work, we work, we work, but we can’t continue,” he said.
He added that while this situation may be different for those working at a desk, blue-collar workers with physically demanding occupations will find it difficult to change.
“I paid taxes for the rest of my life, and I should be spending time with my children and grandchildren,” Jensen told Outlet DK.
Over the past few weeks, Copenhagen has had union-backed protests against an increase in retirement age.
Prior to Thursday’s vote, Denmark’s Federation of Trade Unions President Jesper Ettrup Rasmussen said the proposal to increase the retirement age was “completely unfair.”
“Denmark has a healthy economy, but it’s the highest retirement age in the EU,” he said.
“An older retirement age means that [people will] Lose the right to a dignified elderly life. ”
Retirement ages around Europe vary. Many governments have raised retirement age in recent years to tackle the fiscal deficit, reflecting longevity expectations.
In Sweden, the age of 63 is available for an age individual to begin claiming pension benefits.
The standard pension age in Italy is 67, but as in Denmark, this is subject to adjustments based on estimates of life expectancy and could increase in 2026.
In the UK, people born between October 6, 1954 and April 5, 1960 begin receiving pensions at the age of 66. However, for those born after this date, the state pension age gradually increases.
And in France, a law was passed in 2023 that raised the retirement age from 62 to 64. The highly unpopular change sparked protests and riots, and had to push Congress through without votes by President Emmanuel Macron.
