The paper's analysis finds the retirement rush cresting half a decade ahead of forecasts.

More teachers say they would rather go early with less. Heavier administrative loads, classroom pressures and pension-reform uncertainty are cited as drivers.

With baby boomers exiting en masse, labor gaps and lost know-how loom across schools and the public and private sectors alike.

Shrinking student numbers amid low birth rates add to the push, as small-school consolidations alter perceptions of job stability in teaching.

For an aging Taiwan, pension finances and workforce retention grow ever weightier — and, as in Korea and Japan, debates over extended retirement ages and re-employment are set to follow.