“My first reaction is: so when can I get my pension?” a 30-year-old marketing professional who gave her name as Xinzi, told AFP in Beijing.

“I’m worried that we modern people now are so competitive and distressed that our health may not see us through to that age,” she said.

Officials announced the statutory retirement age for male workers would be raised from 60 to 63. For women workers, it would rise from 50 or 55 years to 55 and 58 years, depending on whether they were “blue-collar workers” or “cadres”.

The retirement age will be gradually raised over 15 years from January 1, 2025, state media said.

Xinzi said she was also concerned about the current job market, where China’s youth unemployment stood at 17.1 percent in July, and whether the extension would make people reconsider having children, exacerbating China’s aging population.

University student David told AFP he felt “a bit reluctant about working so long”, but said he “can understand the decision”.

“The country is probably thinking about its aging population”, the intern at a PR firm, who only wished to give his first name for privacy reasons, said.

Aging society

China is facing a rapidly aging society: its population fell in 2023 for the second year in a row, with policymakers warning of potentially severe impacts on the economy, health care and social welfare systems if action is not taken.

The country’s retirement age had not been raised for decades and had been among the lowest in the world.

Online, a related hashtag quickly shot to the top of social media platform Weibo’s “hot search” list, garnering 560 million views by Friday evening.

Some were supportive of the move. “It’s more moderate than I expected, I can accept it,” read one Weibo comment with over 3,000 likes.

“National policies are in line with the country’s conditions,” another user wrote.

Government censors appeared to scrub many posts from the site—a common occurrence in a country where open discussions of national policy are often deemed sensitive.

However, some dismayed netizens were able to post.

“I don’t know how they thought up this policy, young people are already so anxious, now the retirement age is being extended,” one comment read.

“We’re eating pre-made meals, living in shared apartments, working endless shifts. Don’t feel too sad, everyone; in 15 years, the retirement age will probably be raised again,” read another.

A 21-year-old entrepreneur in Beijing who gave his name as Ha Lide told AFP: “I’m not surprised, I think delaying retirement is an inevitable process.

“If the aging population is severe… there won’t be enough money to distribute for pensions”, he said.

“I’ll just have to bear the three extra years of work.”