This master's thesis focuses on the analysis of the legal status and protection of
workers upon fulfilling conditions for retirement, as past legislative interventions have
repeatedly infringed upon fundamental human rights and freedoms by forcing workers
to retire. The main objective of the research is to examine the legal options available
to workers who meet the retirement criteria but wish to remain employed, as well as
their legal protection against unjustified compulsory termination of employment. The
study employs the descriptive method and analysis of secondary data obtained from
professional articles and legal sources regulating the status of older workers and the
incentives encouraging the extensions of their activity in the labour market.
The findings of this thesis apply to all older workers, with particular attention given to
public sector employees as a specific occupational group. The analysis of legal and
professional sources revealed that in 2020, Slovenia introduced an important incentive
through changes to pension legislation: a bonus granted to workers who, after meeting
retirement conditions, choose to remain employed and continue working. This measure
represents a significant motivation to remain active on the labour market for a longer
period. Although working and pension rights are constitutional, the current legal
framework does not provide specific protection safeguarding workers from being
forced into retirement once they meet the legal conditions, meaning that employers
can still pressure them to retire. Such practices often result in discrimination and violate
the workers' right to freely decide whether to remain employed.
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