We know that women face considerably more roadblocks than men when it comes to financial security, and while we’re making progress there’s still a lonnnnng way to go.
Take the gender pay gap. It’s at a record 20-year low, yet still sits at 14.6 percent; meaning on average, women working full-time are earning $1455.80 while their male counterparts earn $1695.60.
Retirement savings are also depleted for the majority of women in Australia. The gender pay gap of course contributes to this, but women face additional challenges of typically being the ones to take time out of the workforce to raise children or care for elderly relatives. During this time, we lose out on superannuation, leaving millions of women retiring below the poverty line.
In fact, a 2017 HILDA survey found that single, elderly women aged over 60 belonged to the lowest income earning family group.
On average, women take 6 years out of the workforce to raise children. A recent Women in Super Report showed that “for a 30-year old on an annual salary of $50,000, a six-year career break costs $77,000 in lost super accumulation at retirement.”
And, to top it all off, research also tells us that women are less likely than men to invest in the stock market. This is problematic given property investment is not always the safest way to nurture savings.
But it’s hardly surprising that women are hesitant when stock market language is so male-oriented. It’s been an industry dominated by men for centuries, and is now only twigging to the fact that women often hold the purse strings.
In partnership with Stockspot, Women’s Agenda is seeking to explore the other barriers women are facing when it comes to securing financial independence and investing in things outside of property. There are a lot of assumptions out there, but ultimately we’re trying to uncover the truth.
If you have a spare 5 minutes, you can help us to do this, by filling in this brief survey. Please note your answers are confidential and will not be identified with your name.
We’ll be publishing the findings next month.