Blog
A deep-dive into a variety of pension topics to help you understand and learn more about your pension and the Scheme.
12/7/2022
Editorial
<p>Women in 2022 would need to work 18 more years full-time to save the same amount into their pension as men, according to research*. </p><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">The average pension savings of a 65-year-old woman today is just 20 per cent of the average pension savings of a 65-year-old man.</span><br></p><p>While the average UK pension savings have nearly doubled to £111,600, women’s pension savings have hardly increased at all.</p><p> Global life expectancy rates show the average woman living 5 years longer than men, so in fact women should be saving more, not less!</p><h3><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-h3); font-weight: bold; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">Why is there such a wide gender gap in pension savings?</span></h3><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-h3); font-weight: bold; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto"></span>There are numerous reasons but here are the main ones:</p><ul><li>Despite women’s employment rate currently being the highest since records began (72.7%), women are more likely to work part-time. This is usually because they’re more often the main carer for ill and elderly relatives and take time out for small children. <p> </p></li><li>Because women spend on average 10 years away from work due to caring responsibilities, this adds to the gender pay and pensions gap by offering fewer opportunities for career progression and higher salaries, according to the report. <p> </p></li><li>One in six women don’t currently qualify for automatic enrolment as they earn below the current £10,000 per annum threshold which triggers auto-enrolment by the employer. <p> </p></li><li>The high cost of childcare is found to be a barrier for many women considering returning to work. </li></ul><h3>So what can you do to help yourself?</h3><ol><li> <span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; font-size: inherit">The law states that if you earn below the threshold but between £6,240 and £10,000, you can ask your employer to join the Scheme and your employer must include you and pay contributions towards your pension savings.</span><p><br></p></li><li>If you’re enrolled in the Railways Pension Scheme, make sure you register for a myRPS account and really get involved with your pension, so you can take advantage of all the guidance and pension planning tools available to help you prepare wisely for retirement. <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Register and/or log in</a> and check your account today! <p> </p></li><li>Don’t forget your national insurance credits. Many benefits, including child benefits, automatically give you NI credit. Some women don’t sign up for child benefit because if their partner earns over £50,000 they would have to start paying it back. But you don’t need to actually receive the cash – you can just sign up to ensure your NI record and then your State Pension will be protected. <p> </p></li><li>You could consider extending your working life. Your Railways Pension Scheme pension will offer you a Normal Retirement Age (NRA). <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Log in to your myRPS</a> to check what yours is and think about extending it.<p> </p></li><li>Putting in a small, extra regular amount now into AVCs (Additional Voluntary Contributions), could go a long way towards a better future. You can put as little as £2 extra per week. This means you make the most of the valuable tax relief you get and the longer you have your money invested, the more chance it has to grow. If you’re a DB member of the RPS, the main AVC scheme is called <a href="/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/saving-more-with-BRASS">BRASS</a>. For IWDC members, you can <a href="/iwdc-members/Im-still-working/saving-more">save more with AVCs</a>. <p> </p></li><li>If you’ve had a number of different jobs, don’t forget to check that you’ve kept track of all your past pension schemes. The Pension Tracing Service is free and can help you find a pension you’ve lost. Go to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details</a> and follow the online steps.<p> </p></li><li>If you’re a woman working in the railways, why not join <a href="https://womeninrail.org/" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="" target="_blank">Women in Rail</a>? Women in Rail was created to improve diversity in the UK rail industry through providing networking opportunities and support for all women within the sector. There are regional branches across England and Scotland and the groups offer events, career opportunities, news, mentoring and awards. Women in Rail may not directly help you to boost your pension, but you’ll join like-minded women in rail and receive support and guidance.</li></ol><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">*The Gender Pensions Gap Report 2022 by Now Pensions and the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI)</span><br></p><p> </p>
<p>Women in 2022 would need to work 18 more years full-time to save the same amount into their pension as men, according to research*. </p><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">The average pension savings of a 65-year-old woman today is just 20 per cent of the average pension savings of a 65-year-old man.</span><br></p><p>While the average UK pension savings have nearly doubled to £111,600, women’s pension savings have hardly increased at all.</p><p> Global life expectancy rates show the average woman living 5 years longer than men, so in fact women should be saving more, not less!</p><h3><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-h3); font-weight: bold; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">Why is there such a wide gender gap in pension savings?</span></h3><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-h3); font-weight: bold; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto"></span>There are numerous reasons but here are the main ones:</p><ul><li>Despite women’s employment rate currently being the highest since records began (72.7%), women are more likely to work part-time. This is usually because they’re more often the main carer for ill and elderly relatives and take time out for small children. <p> </p></li><li>Because women spend on average 10 years away from work due to caring responsibilities, this adds to the gender pay and pensions gap by offering fewer opportunities for career progression and higher salaries, according to the report. <p> </p></li><li>One in six women don’t currently qualify for automatic enrolment as they earn below the current £10,000 per annum threshold which triggers auto-enrolment by the employer. <p> </p></li><li>The high cost of childcare is found to be a barrier for many women considering returning to work. </li></ul><h3>So what can you do to help yourself?</h3><ol><li> <span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto; font-size: inherit">The law states that if you earn below the threshold but between £6,240 and £10,000, you can ask your employer to join the Scheme and your employer must include you and pay contributions towards your pension savings.</span><p><br></p></li><li>If you’re enrolled in the Railways Pension Scheme, make sure you register for a myRPS account and really get involved with your pension, so you can take advantage of all the guidance and pension planning tools available to help you prepare wisely for retirement. <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Register and/or log in</a> and check your account today! <p> </p></li><li>Don’t forget your national insurance credits. Many benefits, including child benefits, automatically give you NI credit. Some women don’t sign up for child benefit because if their partner earns over £50,000 they would have to start paying it back. But you don’t need to actually receive the cash – you can just sign up to ensure your NI record and then your State Pension will be protected. <p> </p></li><li>You could consider extending your working life. Your Railways Pension Scheme pension will offer you a Normal Retirement Age (NRA). <a href="https://member.railwayspensions.co.uk/login" data-sf-ec-immutable="">Log in to your myRPS</a> to check what yours is and think about extending it.<p> </p></li><li>Putting in a small, extra regular amount now into AVCs (Additional Voluntary Contributions), could go a long way towards a better future. You can put as little as £2 extra per week. This means you make the most of the valuable tax relief you get and the longer you have your money invested, the more chance it has to grow. If you’re a DB member of the RPS, the main AVC scheme is called <a href="/defined-benefit-members/saving-more-BRASS-AVC-Extra/saving-more-with-BRASS">BRASS</a>. For IWDC members, you can <a href="/iwdc-members/Im-still-working/saving-more">save more with AVCs</a>. <p> </p></li><li>If you’ve had a number of different jobs, don’t forget to check that you’ve kept track of all your past pension schemes. The Pension Tracing Service is free and can help you find a pension you’ve lost. Go to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details</a> and follow the online steps.<p> </p></li><li>If you’re a woman working in the railways, why not join <a href="https://womeninrail.org/" data-sf-ec-immutable="" data-sf-marked="" target="_blank">Women in Rail</a>? Women in Rail was created to improve diversity in the UK rail industry through providing networking opportunities and support for all women within the sector. There are regional branches across England and Scotland and the groups offer events, career opportunities, news, mentoring and awards. Women in Rail may not directly help you to boost your pension, but you’ll join like-minded women in rail and receive support and guidance.</li></ol><p><span style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; text-align: inherit; text-transform: inherit; white-space: inherit; word-spacing: normal; caret-color: auto">*The Gender Pensions Gap Report 2022 by Now Pensions and the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI)</span><br></p><p> </p>
Blog
Women in rail - ways to boost your pension
Ladies, here are 7 ways to boost your pension.
Women in 2022 would need to work 18 more years full-time to save the same amount into their pension as men, according to research*.
The average pension savings of a 65-year-old woman today is just 20 per cent of the average pension savings of a 65-year-old man.
While the average UK pension savings have nearly doubled to £111,600, women’s pension savings have hardly increased at all.
Global life expectancy rates show the average woman living 5 years longer than men, so in fact women should be saving more, not less!
Why is there such a wide gender gap in pension savings?
There are numerous reasons but here are the main ones:
- Despite women’s employment rate currently being the highest since records began (72.7%), women are more likely to work part-time. This is usually because they’re more often the main carer for ill and elderly relatives and take time out for small children.
- Because women spend on average 10 years away from work due to caring responsibilities, this adds to the gender pay and pensions gap by offering fewer opportunities for career progression and higher salaries, according to the report.
- One in six women don’t currently qualify for automatic enrolment as they earn below the current £10,000 per annum threshold which triggers auto-enrolment by the employer.
- The high cost of childcare is found to be a barrier for many women considering returning to work.
So what can you do to help yourself?
- The law states that if you earn below the threshold but between £6,240 and £10,000, you can ask your employer to join the Scheme and your employer must include you and pay contributions towards your pension savings.
- If you’re enrolled in the Railways Pension Scheme, make sure you register for a myRPS account and really get involved with your pension, so you can take advantage of all the guidance and pension planning tools available to help you prepare wisely for retirement. Register and/or log in and check your account today!
- Don’t forget your national insurance credits. Many benefits, including child benefits, automatically give you NI credit. Some women don’t sign up for child benefit because if their partner earns over £50,000 they would have to start paying it back. But you don’t need to actually receive the cash – you can just sign up to ensure your NI record and then your State Pension will be protected.
- You could consider extending your working life. Your Railways Pension Scheme pension will offer you a Normal Retirement Age (NRA). Log in to your myRPS to check what yours is and think about extending it.
- Putting in a small, extra regular amount now into AVCs (Additional Voluntary Contributions), could go a long way towards a better future. You can put as little as £2 extra per week. This means you make the most of the valuable tax relief you get and the longer you have your money invested, the more chance it has to grow. If you’re a DB member of the RPS, the main AVC scheme is called BRASS. For IWDC members, you can save more with AVCs.
- If you’ve had a number of different jobs, don’t forget to check that you’ve kept track of all your past pension schemes. The Pension Tracing Service is free and can help you find a pension you’ve lost. Go to https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details and follow the online steps.
- If you’re a woman working in the railways, why not join Women in Rail? Women in Rail was created to improve diversity in the UK rail industry through providing networking opportunities and support for all women within the sector. There are regional branches across England and Scotland and the groups offer events, career opportunities, news, mentoring and awards. Women in Rail may not directly help you to boost your pension, but you’ll join like-minded women in rail and receive support and guidance.
*The Gender Pensions Gap Report 2022 by Now Pensions and the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI)
