Confronting the Superannuation Gender Gap
Advocates say more needs to be done to address the issue, as tweaks to superannuation tax offsets for low-income earners will barely help the quarter of women who retire in poverty.
For example, Rosemary, a 60-year-old mid-level manager at an aged-care home in Victoria, worries about affording her own old age due to minimal superannuation savings.
"I'll have to work for as long as I can," she says. "However long an employer will keep me."
Rosemary's situation is not unique, as many Australian women approaching retirement age face financial uncertainty due to time taken out of the workforce to raise children.
- Rosemary took 10 years out of the workforce to raise her children.
- Her situation was further complicated when "their father left".
Author's summary: Australian women face a superannuation gender gap.