Increasing the Superannuation Guarantee to 12% as currently legislated is key to improving the retirement outcomes for Australian women, the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) said today.
AIST CEO Eva Scheerlinck said lifting compulsory super contributions was necessary to address the unique challenges that women face when it comes to paid work and career breaks.
“Currently, an estimated 40 per cent of single women are retiring in poverty and older women are the fastest growing cohort of homeless people,” Ms Scheerlinck said. “Leaving super at 9.5 per cent will simply condemn more women to financial hardship in retirement at a time when many do not have safety net of home ownership relied upon by previous generations.”
Commenting on Freedom of Information documents referenced by the media on the weekend in which Treasury noted that increasing the 12% would widen the gender savings gap, Ms Scheerlinck said the retirement savings gap between women and men needed to be addressed in other ways.
“Disappointingly, the government has not made any recommendations to reduce the gender gap. It has identified the problems – such as the gender wage gap and the impact of career breaks on women – but it hasn’t provided any solutions. Instead, we have Liberal backbenchers and the Grattan Institute proposing to take away the one solution that will make a difference to women, Ms Scheerlinck said.
“Any move to renege the legislated increase SG to 12% is not going to help millions of Australian women retire with dignity,” she added.
AIST supports Women in Super’s advocacy to reduce the gender gap in retirement savings with a range of targeted measures that include:
- Provide women and other low-income earners with an additional $1000 contribution annually into their super, boosting their balance and helping them make up the gap
- Remove the $450 monthly pay threshold which sees an estimated 220,000 women miss out on super every year
- Make sure that super is paid on parental leave to ensure it is treated like all other types of leave
