More than 2 million workers will now be able to retire immediately, less than six months before an election, thanks to a decision made by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday.
The president made the announcement on Wednesday during a news conference about the well-liked policy change.
In an effort to rebuild support that had been lost as a result of inflation, a decline in the value of the lira, and a sharp decline in living standards, Erdogan’s ruling AK Party significantly increased the minimum wage last week.
The retirement age was previously set at 60 for men and 58 for women. The cost of the new system wasn’t yet known, but Erdogan claimed 2.25 million people qualified for immediate retirement. Turkey currently has 13.9 million pensioners.
For a number of years, labour unions had opposed the minimum age requirement, arguing that workers should only be required to work the required number of days before retiring. The action is thought to be helping Erdogan ahead of a crucial election scheduled for June.
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