DPJ postpones raising pension eligibility age

A Democratic Party of Japan committee discussing public pension reform has deferred a plan to raise the eligibility age for private employees to receive pension benefits to between 68 and 70, according to its interim report. The team, under the party's council for health, labor and welfare affairs, said in the report released Tuesday that mutual pension schemes mainly for public servants should be incorporated into the private employees' pension plan. The group also insisted that the coverage of the employees pension scheme should be expanded to include part-time workers and other laborers with short working hours who are not covered by the scheme. (Yomiuri)