Equal Pay. Equal Benefits ?

When women started to enter the workforce the social thinking of that time set pay standards lower than for men.  That has slowly improved over recent decades and the maxim of " equal pay for equal work " is starting to apply, but women's work seems to be concentrated in industries where lower pay standards are essential in balancing the economy.   The government has a need to avoid restoring this pay balance by legislation because to do so would bring a sharp cost of living increase across the board.

What is more alarming, but mostly ignored is the vast difference between the sexes when it comes to retirement incomes.  Few women in the general workforce receive a retirement payout similar to that of a male doing a similar job - because the system is stacked against them.

In earlier decades most superannuation schemes worked on what was called a " Defined Benefit " - the pension on retirement was based on a proportion of the actual salary the retiree was drawing at that time.  Todays retirement schemes work on a different system.  Both the worker and the employer contribute to a " pot "  and what the retiree receives on termination depends on how much that pot has accumulated over that period of time.

This is where women lose out badly.  Most women suffer a work interruption during their child bearing years and often relocate to a lesser work category to balance family needs.  They are less likely to be granted promotion to higher responsibility levels as male counterparts and in many companies there is a distinction between " executive " and " weekly paid " retirement contribution levels.

That difference is stark.  " Salaried " staff are generally in supervisory roles and they are paid by a monthly transfer of funds directly into their bank account.  They enjoy greater sickness benefits and often are beneficiaries of company cars and expense accounts.  Working conditions are more relaxed and often company travel is involved and catered at luxury level.

The weekly paid people live in a more regimented environment.  That pay packet comes with a strict application of sickness absence dictated by award conditions and often arrival and departure is required to be recorded by use of a time clock.   Because of the past reluctance to promote women to supervisory positions many women remain at this level for their entire working lives.   The amount of money they receive at retirement is significantly less than that enjoyed by their companies salaried staff component,

As a result, most retired women live a more frugal life.  They have a life expectation five years longer than men and they are generally more cautious with their investments.  Many opt for a small guaranteed annuity rather than make investment risks and in particular, women living alone in retirement are often subjected to an austere mode of living.

The women's movement seem to be concentrated on achieving equal pay and that is commendable, but the retirement issue is becoming more important because of changing lifestyles.   In the past, it was assumed that most people retired as a couple sharing common retirement funds.   Divorce or separation is now a fact of life and many of both sexes are likely to need to finance their final years alone.

The present superannuation regimes are not meeting this need.  Perhaps a new frontier that needs urgent attention