A new report on pensions published by the National Labour Council (CNT) and the Central Council of the Economy (CCE) revealed that in 2021, only 21% of civil servants retired at 65. The current legal pensions age in Belgium is 65.
Yet the report showed that many civil servants couldn't wait, with three-quarters taking retirement before the age of 65. Some (7.75%) even did so before their 60th birthday.
For civil servants, the prospects for retiring earlier are considerably more flexible than for employees in the private sector. Those working in certain positions in the public sector, such as in the postal service or military, may be inclined to end their careers much earlier.
Despite this trend, over the last five years, the retirement age of most civil servants has increased.
In 2017, only 15% of workers made the decision to retire when they hit 65. Of those retiring earlier, more now do so at 62-63 rather than at 60 years or less. In 2021, the largest fraction of those retiring (22%) was at 61-years-old.
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Across the border in France, public sector unions organised days of national strikes against planned proposals to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. More than 1.2 million people marched across the country against French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposals.
