‘Grossly unfair’: How Australia’s super system penalises mothers

Australian workers get paid superannuation payments during paid sick leave, paid long service leave and paid annual leave.

But it’s not a legal requirement that Australians receive superannuation when they take paid parental leave, a policy setting Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas has described as “outdated”.

The Victorian government is pushing for superannuation payments made to parents who access the Commonwealth paid parental leave scheme, as part of a larger suite of proposed superannuation reforms announced on Wednesday.

Australian women retire with an average $122,848, while their male counterparts retire with $154,453, the Association of Super Funds of Australia (ASFA) found in its July 2019 report.

And while women have lower super balances across all age bands, the size of the gap jumps significantly as women age into their 30s and 40s.

Read more: https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/grossly-unfair-how-australias-super-system-penalises-mothers/