Women are not closing the super gap with men, despite rises in the superannuation guarantee and some private employers increasing paid parental leave.  While there has been some improvement in the super gender gap in recent years, women still retire with about 23% less than men.

There are a number of factors driving the change, according to Women in Super CEO Jo Kowalczyk. One important factor is that men continue to dominate high-income jobs, the ones that allow enough free cash to make significant voluntary super contributions along with higher super guarantee payments.

KPMG, in their Towards Gender Equity in Retirement Report, claims people who leave the workforce to look after aged, infirm or ill dependents – predominantly women – could have their superannuation balances boosted by over $120,000. And that it could be done at a neutral cost to the budget by including superannuation guarantee contributions in paid parental leave and the carer payment.