Fast Facts: Identifying the Root Causes of Gender Disparities in Retirement

Jun 03, 2021
  • Description

This Fast Fact report from The Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) highlights statistics captured as part of the organization's April 2021 Issue Brief – Retirees in Profile: Evaluating Five Distinct Lifestyles in Retirement.

These findings underscore that despite significant improvements in women's labor force participation over the past decades, gender inequality remains a persistent issue in many aspects of women's working lives, including retirement security. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, disparities have grown. Older women have been disproportionately represented in industries that suffered heavily from the pandemic, such as retail and hospitality. Policy changes that are sensitive to women's unique retirement needs can help narrow the gap.

The Employee Benefit Research Institute is a nonpartisan, tax-exempt organization contributing to sound employee benefit programs and public policy through independent, objective, fact-based research and education.

This report was developed with support from RRF Foundation for Aging.

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