Hanoi (VNA) - Some special occupations including preschool teachersshould be allowed to retire earlier than the age set in the Labour Code, said TrinhThanh Hang, head of the department for woman affairs of the Vietnam GeneralConfederation of Labour (VGCL).

Speaking at a workshop held in Hanoi on June 16 to consult experts and managerson a draft decree on retirement age and pension entitlements, she saidpreschool teaching is a special occupation that requires certain skills.

According to Hang, preschool teachers must be able to dance, sing, story-telland understand the psychology of each child.

They had to work under pressure to meet the quality of education while ensuringthe health, spirit and safety of children, she said.

The actual working hours of preschool teachers often exceed normal hoursbecause they have to go to school early to welcome the children and come homelate but they receive almost no additional salary.

With such characteristics, there will be a big gap in age between preschoolteachers aged 50 and older and the children, she said.

The retirement age for male and female workers will be raised from thebeginning of next year under the revised Labour Code which was approved by theNational Assembly in November last year.

Under normal working conditions, the pension age will be raised from 60 for menand 55 for women at present to 62 (in 2028) and 60 (in 2035), respectively.

The retirement age will increase by three months for male and four months forfemale workers every year until it reaches the target.

Hang said a reductionin retirement age for preschool teachers would not only give them rights butalso help rejuvenate the workforce, improving the quality of education.

Agreeing with Hang, Cu Thi Thuy, deputy head of the Department of Earlychildhood Education under the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), saidrequirements for preschool teachers are increasing. They had to take care ofchildren and handle unexpected situations.

Nguyen Ngoc An, Vice Chairman of the MoET’s Trade Union, said 96 percent of10,698 people surveyed by the union agreed that preschool teachers should beallowed to retire at 55.

Hang also suggested the retirement age be reviewed towards granting rights tolabourers.

If an employee wishes to continue working and their health is still ensured,they can continue working to retirement age like others in normal conditions.

She also suggested labourers working in the arts such as dancers, circusperformers should also be subjected to retire early.

According to Le Van Trinh, Chairman of the Labour Safety Science and TechnologyAssociation, based on analysing issues related to the health of Vietnameseworkers and their working conditions, it is unreasonable to set a maximum retirementage of five years early for those engaged in hazardous and dangerous jobs. Hesaid the gap in retirement age was up to 15 years in some countries.

Trinh said the retirement age should be 50 for male workers in mines andoffshore oil platforms to ensure their health./.