Gender Pay Gap follows women into retirement
30 May 2018
New research from Prudential reveals that women retiring in 2018 will have incomes 29 percent lower than men - nearly £5,000 annually; however, their retirement income has hit an all-time high as the gender gap shrinks.
Prudential has, for the last 11 years, tracked the finances, future plans and aspirations of people planning to retire in the year ahead. Its ‘Class of 2018’ research highlights the persistence of the gender gap with men expecting to retire on an average annual income of £21,800 compared with women’s of £16,900.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s Minimum Income Standard states the income for a single pensioner should be at least £9,998. However, findings show that one in six women will be retiring with an income below this standard, compared to just one in 10 of men.
The retirement income gender gap is narrowing and is now the second lowest on record with the smallest gap recorded in 2015 at a £4,800 disparity. This is a significant improvement when compared with the widest gender gap in 2008 when the average expected retirement income for men was 84 percent, or £9,500 higher than that expected by women.
Furthermore, both men and women are now retiring on a higher average annual income in 2018 than any other time over the last 11 years. Women retiring this year will be £2,600 a year better off than last year, while men will be £1,150 better off.