The country’s two umbrella labor unions have urged the National Assembly and the government to pass legislation within the year to raise the retirement age to 65.

At a press conference on Wednesday, the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions said a higher retirement age is what the public wants and is in line with the changing times.

The labor groups pointed to the five-year gap between the current retirement age, 60, and the age of eligibility for national pension benefits, saying this gap causes economic difficulties for many people.

Recalling the ruling Democratic Party’s election pledge to increase the retirement age to 65, the unions criticized its failure to act promptly over the past seven months since the launch of a task force on the matter.

The groups also called on the ruling camp to raise the retirement age for all workers without discrimination, in response to a proposal from the business community asking for the option to select which employees to rehire.