The Australian Services Union today demanded the Federal Government fix the superannuation system so it stops failing women.
A recent report by Per Capita, commissioned by the Australian Services Union – Not so Super for Women – found women have an average 53% of the super savings of men.
Analysis for the Australian Services Union shows earnings under $450 from an employer in a given month do not attract superannuation, which primarily affects the majority female casual and part time workforce, especially those working in several different jobs.
“Nothing has been done to address the issue. It seems that no matter what facts we present, the Federal Government are happy for women to be left behind” Linda White, Assistant National Secretary said.
“The new Prime Minister must act decisively to fix this injustice.
“On average women end up with half the super that men accumulate by retirement leaving many women in abject poverty at retirement and this is not acceptable in modern Australia”.
One in every two employed women works part-time compared to only one in every five men. Women are 68.6% of all part time employees, according to official data.
“This is a wicked problem driven by issues like lower pay and the fact women still do the majority of parenting and caring work, but there are very simple things that can be done to balance the ledger.
“Fixing this flaw that sees people with very low pay missing out on super would cost very little but would start to level the playing field” Ms White said.
The ASU commissioned a survey through Galaxy Research with a representative sample of 1068 Australians about superannuation. This research found that more than three in four Australians (76%) people earning under $450 per month from an employer should earn superannuation on their income. Only 16% disagree (8% said they don’t know).
“The vast majority of Australians support the removal of these flaws in the super system and we’re calling on all sides of politics to adopt our recommendations which come from two years of work on this issue which has been ignored for too long” Ms White said.
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