Looking forward to retiring at 55

Ms. Chuong Thi Phuong Loan, 52 years old, teacher at Tuoi Tho 7 Kindergarten, Vo Thi Sau Ward, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, has 33 years of experience in the profession. Currently a teacher of class 3A (children 3-4 years old), the elderly kindergarten teacher still holds children every day, teaches them to dance, sing, run, jump, do exercises, act, tell stories, skills, coax children to eat, and help them sleep...

Ms. Chuong Thi Phuong Loan is busy for nearly 11 hours at school.

A DAY OF WORKING WITH HANDS AND FEET NEARLY 11 HOURS

Every day, if she cleans and prepares the classroom for the children, Ms. Loan must be there at 6:30 a.m. On days when she is assigned to pick up the children at the school gate, she will arrive at 6:45 a.m. At 5 p.m., when all the children have left, the teachers can go home early. Otherwise, if the parents pick up their children later, the teachers will wait until the children are safely delivered before ending a long day of work.

"Taking care of preschool children (3-4 years old) is less tiring for teachers. Taking care of preschool children (6-24 months) is very difficult. Many new children cry all day long, I have to hold them in my arms all the time, and when I sleep, I also carry them on my shoulder and lean them against the wall to rest," said Ms. Loan.

After 11 o'clock, when we entered class 3B, Tuoi Tho 7 Kindergarten (District 3), the children in the class were getting ready for their afternoon nap when a new child was brought to the class by his mother. The boy was taller than many of his classmates, but had difficulty walking and could not eat by himself. While Ms. Luu Thuy Anh, (47 years old) wiped the child's face and changed his clothes, another teacher in the class fed him rice and cleaned his personal hygiene. After the child finished eating, she continued to clean the floor and toilet one more time.

With dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep, a haggard face, holding two children who were still whining and refusing to sleep, Ms. Luu Thuy Anh said that she had many underlying diseases, but because she loved her job and children, she always tried to do her best. "I just hope to retire when I'm 55, because in a few more years, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep up, won't be able to carry the children anymore," the teacher said. After 12 o'clock, the children in the class were sleeping soundly, under the dim light in the room, the teachers slowly ate their lunch after a tiring morning.

SUPPORT WITH BOTH HANDS!

Ms. Luong Thi Hong Diep, Head of the Preschool Education Department, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, said she "supports with all her heart" the proposal of the Ministry of Education and Training that preschool teachers should have a retirement age of up to 5 years lower than the prescribed age.

Ms. Diep said: "Older teachers cannot dance. Their smiles have wrinkles on their mouths and eyes, and their eyesight is also poor. Meanwhile, preschool teachers must be very sharp-eyed to handle things very quickly when children are trying to put seeds in their eyes, ears, or mouths. Over 55 years old, there are many diseases such as arthritis, vestibular disorders, not 100% of people are weak, but clearly only a small number are still flexible and energetic."

Ms. Luu Thuy Anh, 47 years old, has many underlying diseases but still loves her job and children.

Ms. Diep added: "Every preschool teacher is an artist in dancing, singing, and physical education. She sings well, dances well, helps children imitate the movements of this child or that child. When there is music, she can dance and encourage students to dance along. But when they get older, most teachers find that the kind of music that children like is no longer suitable. Even when they dance with the children, it is forced. Parents also like young teachers to teach their children. Teachers are creative and have flexible thinking..."

We also recorded the opinions of preschool teachers in Ho Chi Minh City as well as management staff. Ms. Nguyen Thi My Ngoc, 51 years old (30 years of working experience), Phu My Kindergarten, District 7, confided: "We hope to retire at the age of 55. We really hope so. Nowadays, many people have back pain, leg pain, arm pain, like me, having to go to the doctor all day, taking medicine, and holding children is also more difficult. Preschool teachers should always be neat, agile, speak softly, create a beautiful image in front of children, which is also a way to educate children aesthetically, creating more attraction in classroom activities for children."

In 2023, at what age do preschool teachers retire?

Pursuant to Article 169 of the 2019 Labor Code, employees who ensure the conditions on social insurance payment period as prescribed by the law on social insurance are entitled to receive pension when reaching retirement age.

From 2021, the retirement age of employees in normal working conditions is 60 years and 3 months for male employees and 55 years and 4 months for female employees. After that, it will increase by 3 months for male employees and 4 months for female employees each year.

Thus, in 2023, the retirement age for male workers will be 60 years and 9 months, and for female workers it will be 56 years old (the attached table shows the retirement age in 2023 and the following years).

The retirement age of employees in normal working conditions is adjusted according to the roadmap until reaching 62 years old for male employees in 2028 and 60 years old for female employees in 2035.

Workers with reduced working capacity; working in particularly arduous, toxic, or dangerous jobs; working in arduous, toxic, or dangerous jobs; working in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions may retire at a lower age, but not more than 5 years older than the above regulations.

An anonymous teacher, 50 years old, working at a kindergarten in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, confided: "After 50 years old, the body is very tired. If I don't dance, the children won't dance, and at this age, dancing to lose weight and prevent obesity for children is very tiring. Then the eyesight is poor, the hands and feet are not as flexible as when I was young. The work is stressful, sometimes when the children walk too fast, I can't run to them and they fall, the parents sympathize and don't care, but there are people who call at 10-11 pm to scold the teacher for letting the child scratch their knee...".

Ms. Pham Bao Hanh, Principal of Phu My Kindergarten, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, said that the job of a kindergarten teacher is very hard, tiring, stressful, and the working hours last all day, so kindergarten teachers all hope to retire 5 years earlier than the regulations.

A kindergarten manager in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, said he supports the policy of allowing kindergarten teachers to retire at the age of 55. However, there should be a policy allowing kindergarten teachers who are 55 years old, if they are still healthy, still love their job, are enthusiastic about their job, and meet all the criteria for the job, to continue working as they wish.

WHAT DOES THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROPOSE?

Commenting on the draft revised Law on Social Insurance, the Ministry of Education and Training proposed that preschool teachers should retire at a maximum of 5 years lower than the prescribed age (female preschool teachers retire at age 55, male teachers at age 57).

According to the Ministry of Education and Training, the provisions of the Law on Education and the Regulations on Kindergarten, the duty of kindergarten teachers is to care for, educate and nurture children from 3 months to 6 years old. This is an age that requires caregivers and educators to be highly focused throughout the time the children are at school to ensure the safety of the children.

The Ministry of Education and Training proposed: "The Ministry finds that the regulation of retirement age for preschool teachers being a maximum of 5 years lower than the prescribed age is very appropriate; it is recommended that the drafting agency study and supplement the case of preschool teachers with a retirement age of a maximum of 5 years lower than the prescribed age."

Over the past 3 years, the Vietnam Education Trade Union and the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor have at least twice proposed classifying preschool teachers as a heavy, toxic, and dangerous profession, which is the basis for preschool teachers to retire 5 years early.

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