One in five Australian women are not receiving super payments
Senate told to scrap the $450 monthly super threshold to allow more women and part-time employees to earn super payments.
The Senate is under increasing pressure to abolish the current monthly threshold which states employers are not required to pay the 9.5% superannuation guarantee to employees who earn less than $450 a month.
Because of this current threshold, one in five (20%) female workers are not receiving superannuation payments, according to a new poll by Essential Media for the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST).
The threshold is more likely to affect women than men; women make up two-thirds (67%) of the part-time workforce, whereas men are twice as likely to work full-time than part-time. The highest proportion of women affected are millennials between the ages of 18 and 35 years old.
AIST used these findings to add weight to its submission to the Senate Inquiry into the non-payment of superannuation, due to report on 22 March.
AIST acting CEO Eva Scheerlinck said, “We need to remove all barriers that prevent women saving enough super for a dignified retirement.”
“With the increasing casualisation of the workforce, the $450 threshold will continue to impact on both women and men – many of whom are low-income earners and need all the super they can get.”
Women in Super (WIS) also compiled a submission for the Senate Inquiry, highlighting the issue that many women work part-time for multiple employers and earn under $450 for each employer, but earn over $450 in the month.
“Working for several employers which appears to be common practice in these industries, works against such women as they are not eligible for SG (superannuation guarantee) even if they earn more than $450 in one month,” WIS said in its submission.
This is particularly common in female-dominated industries such as retail, hospitality and nursing.
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