Lets change the song

I receive Google alerts about retirement and every day there are stories that have the same theme. How tough it is for women to save for retirement; women are more likely than men to end their days in poverty than men; women have it tough when it comes to finances.  

The stories usually follow this format: 1.) Women make less than men, 2.) women are in the labour force for less time and therefore work less than men, 3.) women live longer than men, 4.) women don't invest as much as men, 5.) when women invest, they are more successful than men. 6.) women need to save more, 6.) women need to learn more about money. The structure may change but the theme is the same, blame women for their inability to save enough for retirement. Here are a few excerpts from some stories that came in on one day.

Story One--Financial strategies for women over 50 can help

Not only do they make substantially less than men, overall, but they also spend less time in the workforce, carry higher levels of college debt and often don’t have access to a retirement plan at work.

All these things, in addition to others—serving as caregivers for family members (and devoting not just time but precious income to help them), having less money with which to save for retirement, having to get by on lower Social Security because of years of lower-income—all come together to create a perfect storm at retirement for many.

Women are more likely to end their days in poverty and to spend whatever they might have less on long-term care (since they’re usually the caregivers, there’s seldom anyone around to care for them when they need it).

Story Two-Women at risk of 'financial meltdown' due to lack of individual pension rights

Women of all age groups are at risk of a “financial meltdown” in the event of a relationship breakdown because of their lack of individual pension rights or even financial plans, according to new research by Royal London. 

According to a YouGov survey specially commissioned for Royal London, approximately 45 percent of women living with a partner said they were either not confident or did not know if their long term financial plans would be adequate if their current relationship failed. Just 34 percent of men felt the same way.

Royal London pensions specialist, Helen Morrissey said the findings are “extremely worrying” and show that “we have a long way to go to ensure women are building resilient retirement plans”.

Story Three--The top money tips for older women

Question Do younger and older women differ, in how they understand and handle money?

“The irony is that your need for safety gets in the way of true financial security.”

I find that younger women are more open and transparent about it. They have to deal with a lot of issues as young adults, like student debt, and they talk about it as a way to find solutions. Older women are not as open, because they have accumulated years of baggage, and have been told their whole lives not to talk about it.

Story Four---More Women Growing Old Poor In Phoenix, Mirroring National Trend

More and more women are growing old poor. That’s according to a report by the national advocacy group Justice in Aging. In Phoenix, the reasons why mirror what’s happening nationally.

The problem is these stories don't tell the correct story. We need to change the story and the song. The facts are that we pay women less than men, and that is one of the main reasons women put less away for retirement. The story has to be shifted so we start talking about paying women the same as men. Now I know that most men are not great at saving for retirement but we have a head start because we make more money.  It is, in my humble opinion, scandalous that even though we have had laws on the books for over 50 years, women are not receiving equal pay for equal work.   Boomer women are retiring alongside Boomer men and since they will live longer their well being will be a major crisis for society in the next few years.

In the United States, there had been The Equal Pay Act since 1963. It is a United States labour law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex. It was signed into law on June 10, 1963, by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program. However, this law some 56 years later has had no effect on women’s wages overall. Sad and destructive to our economic well being. 

In Canada, Ontario has a similar act. Under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA), subject to certain exceptions, an employer cannot pay one employee at a rate of pay less than another employee on the basis of sex when they perform substantially the same kind of work in the same establishment, their work requires substantially the same skill, effort and responsibility and their work is performed under similar working conditions.

Let's not spend too much energy wringing our hands because women cannot save enough for retirement lets focus our energies on working to ensure that women are paid the same as men when they are working. That is the crises we need to spend time and energy on. and when we get to the point when we pay women equally,  over time women will be in the position that they need not worry about ending their lives in poverty.

Memories are made of this

My oldest cousin died a while back. I know that death at our age is expected, but hers was a surprise. There are a number of reasons I feel sad about her loss. First, we were not close, but I remember her as a very strong, friendly person who had a laugh and a smile that would light up the room. She was the daughter of my Dad’s oldest sister and with her death, a family connection is severed. She was a person who was very close to her family and had a zest for life that few 80+ people have. I remember driving her up to our uncle’s funeral a bit over a year ago. As we drove, she filled me in on what her children and grandchildren were doing and how excited she was about their plans, and how she would have to find time to fit in all of the upcoming activities.

She was actually older than my aunt and joked about how she would live for a while yet and she said that when she died, she would not have a big celebration of life. I understand that sentiment and I understand her children are having a small memorial service with only close family in attendance.

My brother pointed out to me that with her passing, there I and my cousin E are the oldest of our generation. My cousin E is two years older than I am, and her health, I understand, is not good. E is a very strong and resourceful lady and I am sure that she will live a long time, or so I hope.

I thought about what my brother said and it made me think about family, connections and moments in life that we want to remember and pass on. My cousin that just died sent my aunt a picture of my grandfather and grandmother on their wedding day and my aunt is sending me a copy. I will add it to my collection.

I have, like many of you, started to digitize old pictures and slides. My mother put all of the pictures she had into albums for the family. She did that for us before she passed and looking through the old albums brought back many great memories. I want my children and my grandson to have the same opportunity to look back and see what memories we wanted to be captured and remembered.  This is a challenge as there seem to be thousands of pictures but doing a few at a time and looking at what has been done not what needs to be done, makes the task less daunting.

Where have all the volunteer leaders gone, long time passing?

The lack of leadership is not just in the volunteer area. Back in the early 2,000’s academics were sounding the alarm about the lack of leadership in all areas.

There is a well-noted and alarming trend reported throughout the world—a desperate shortage of good leaders and talented professionals. These shortages appear at a time when the world is reeling from years of failed leadership. Leaders either have struggled valiantly with ineffective means, such as bureaucracy and command and control, or they have held onto power through brutal and corrupt means. Margaret J. Wheatley

Since we have not been training leaders, over time people who have leadership aspirations or skills quietly moved into non-leadership positions. There is an abundance of research that tells us that if people did not learn new skills or keep themselves active in activities beyond employment, they will not change when they retire.

Over the last two weeks, I have had similar conversations with three leaders of volunteer groups that work with people who are retired, or who are low income. The conversations focused on the fact that leadership is tired and wants to step aside for younger people with perhaps more energy and perhaps new ideas. One person said we have a great many people on our Board who love to say “I am on the Board of …. (but she said, they don’t want to do any of the work.  I said well perhaps at your next annual meeting someone will step forward.) She shook her head and said, they didn’t last year that is why I am still here. The conversations with the other two presidents were similar in ideas although the content was different.  Why are people not stepping up to take leadership roles?

One reason could be that each generation has its own approach and the older Boomers are not or have not paid attention to the needs of the younger members of the organization. Another reason may be that the leadership is seen as not wanting new ideas and are closed to suggestions for change. Another reason is that the organization itself is resistant to the idea of change. The organizational leadership does not encourage or help train new leadership, or they have not set up a leadership succession policy.

Each of the above reasons alone would hold back any potential leader and over time a leadership vacuum happens. The problem is that the present board leadership may not understand what is happening, even though the president does understand.  Every organization needs to, in my opinion, renew itself to continue. That renewal may start with a discussion of a vision and mission statement. I suspect many organizations have not looked at these statements since they were created. There are organizations and people who can help organizations renew and reinvigorate themselves so I hope that the leaders I talked to can take advantage of the information we shared so they can bring on new leaders, and their organizations can continue to be thriving contributors to our society.

Fear of being homeless

Yesterday I talked about money fears and the fear of being homeless. The fear of being homeless is not an irrational fear as every day I hear stories in the news about seniors being displaced from their homes. This is a result of the high price of property in the area where I live. Many seniors who rent are being forced out by landlords eager to capitalize on the increased property values. The governments are looking at the issue and are taking steps to help seniors and others who are caught up in the renovictions landlords are using to increase their income.

Around the world there is also, concern about seniors becoming homeless. A 2013 report by Women’s Property Initiatives looked at Bag Lady Syndrome in Australia and found that Australian baby boomer women are facing a poverty crisis that will affect wellbeing, economic viability and housing – and leadership is needed to ensure these women do not become “bag ladies” on the streets in their twilight years.

The increasing problem of lack of affordable housing has a dramatic but under-reported impact on single older women. The report also found that older women’s housing stress is linked to the following circumstances:

·       older divorced or separated women in Australia have the highest rate of financial disadvantage of all separating couples

·       women live longer than men but continue to earn less then men, both in lower wages and due to working part-time hence women have fewer savings and superannuation

·       the lack of appropriate and affordable housing

·       older women are subject to exploitation by others, such as family members whose interest is the housing, not the women

·       older women face problems of cultural adaptation and can be embarrassed about revealing their plight, such as lack of family support, to the public and/or welfare organizations

·       older women’s lack of money skills and knowledge of where to access help when their partner dies

·       older women’s susceptibility to the marriage breakdown of the adult children who support them, with the most significant increase in the proportion of divorced and separated adults in the 40-69 age range.

·       psychiatric disorders are more prevalent amongst older women than men.

·       older women have high rates of poverty.

But being homeless doesn’t have to become inevitable. At any age, you can change your situation so you don’t end up on the streets. First of all, try to save a little bit each week, even if it’s a tiny amount in a jar – it’ll add up. Then, get some financial advice whether it’s online or in person.

After that, it’s all about finding out what you really want out of your 60s and beyond. Remember: you have a community here that can help you if you need it – you’re never alone.