Key Takeaways:
- Women may face greater retirement challenges because of lower lifetime earnings, caregiving responsibilities, longer life expectancies, and greater reliance on Social Security.
- Taking advantage of employer retirement plans, maintaining career skills, and creating a written retirement strategy can help women build greater financial confidence.
- Proactive retirement planning can help women identify their financial priorities, prepare for potential career interruptions, and make more informed decisions about their long-term financial future.
Workplace pay between women and men has long been anything but equitable.
Women on average earn only 82% of what men earn for similar occupations. Women are also more than 10% more likely to have no retirement savings compared to men. How are women to retire comfortably under those circumstances?
The latest survey from the non-profit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies (TCRS), found that only 1 out of every 5 women are “very” confident they will be able to fully retire with a comfortable lifestyle. Over 2,900 women and over 2,700 men were polled for the study.
Why Are American Women Worried About Retirement?
The so called “gender gap” in pay has much to do with the issue. Lower pay equals lower investing for retirement. Add the fact that women generally live longer than men and the problem grows worse.
Interestingly, women have a greater reliance on Social Security for the reasons mentioned above, yet they also have less confidence in the program. 1 out of 4 women expect Social Security to be their primary source of income in retirement versus 1 out of 5 men.
Lower wages as well as a shorter number of years to earn wages due to taking care of children, parents, etc., means lower Social Security checks. As of the end of 2021, the average Social Security payment for all retirees was $1,658 per month according to the Social Security Administrations Annual Statistical Supplement for 2022.
For men, the the average monthly check was $1,838 while for women is was $1,483. Multiply the difference for a 25-year retirement (25×12) and you get a figure of over $100,000.
4 Factors Holding Women Back From A Comfortable Retirement:
- Caregiving Responsibilities. 41% of women are currently or have previously served as caregivers during their working years. 84% had to make adjustments to their jobs because of caregiving such as missing work.
- Failing to take advantage of company-sponsored retirement plans. 1 in 4 women do not participate in such plans.
- Not preparing for long careers. 6 out of 10 women respondents are staying healthy, while only half are keeping their job skills up to date. Losing a job late in your career could have a negative impact on your retirement savings and Social Security benefits.
- Inadequate retirement planning . Only 1 in 4 women have a financial strategy for retirement in the form of a written plan.
The study stated that “many women are not yet engaging in financial planning. By doing so, they can set goals, identify priorities, and become even more mindful in their everyday decision-making.”
What can Retirement Solutions offer?
For decades, Retirement Solutions has offered women the opportunity to view their financial future with anticipation rather than apprehension by providing sensible, easy-to-digest financial plans, along with the education women deserve about their finances and investment portfolios.
We offer a 15-minute, no-cost, no-obligation consultation to determine if we can help you and if there is a good fit between us. There will be no pressure placed upon you after the 15 minutes, we promise!
Simply click the “Schedule a Consultation” link in the upper right corner of this page. You talk, we listen.
