women and pensions

Millions of women missing out on pension income

Rebecca Atkinson — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:50:00 +0100

Nearly two million women could be losing out on potential pension income because of confusion over eligibility, according to research from HSBC.

Although the research shows a marked increase in the number of women taking control of their pensions over the past three years, the level of understanding of retirement planning has not improved at all.

Just over half of women surveyed aged between 18 and 60 now contribute to a pension – but of those not currently planning for retirement, nearly a third believed they were too young to do so while 22% didn’t think they could afford to prioritise pension provision.

Beat your sexist boss

Jeff Salway — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 16:19:29 +0000

Wimbledon ended 123 years of inequality in February 2007, when the All England Club bowed to mounting pressure to award women tennis players the same level of prize money as their male counterparts. But while this was great news for female tennis players, women throughout Britain are still earning less than male colleagues in the same role.

The exact size of the pay gap for full-time work is unclear. The Work and Women Commission claims women on average earn 83p for every £1 earned by men, while salary comparison site Payfinder.com claims women get a measly 76p for every £1 men earn.

It's never too early to plan for retirement

Rebecca Atkinson — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 12:43:17 +0000

Make the break and start afresh

Rebecca Atkinson — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 10:13:58 +0000

It's difficult to relate to the high-profile divorce cases in the media, with celebrities and big-money couples quibbling over a few million here and there, when the reality for most people is very different.

Back in the real world, Moneyexpert.com has found that the average divorcing couple has combined assets of just £230,000. So when this sum has to be split between two households following a divorce, with mortgages and bills to pay, kids to feed and a good standard of living to sustain, every penny counts.