Women’s financial security more impacted during pandemic

August 2020: Women may now need even greater financial advice and planning as they face different financial challenges than men. Pre-pandemic, women earned $0.87 for every $1 earned by men. Besides holding demanding jobs, women often play a primary caregiving role for both children and aging parents which often translates to more time out from work, less money saved, and smaller pensions for retirement. The pandemic has escalated these challenges as many of the lost or impacted jobs have been those held by women, and lost day care and the need to educate children from home has largely fallen to women which further inhibits their ability to return to work or have meaningful incomes. Women also live longer than men so have longer periods of retirement to finance. Lastly, women also have higher disability rates than men and may incur costly long-term care needs as they age. Sadly this pandemic will likely have a long term or permanent impact on many women’s financial futures so getting good professional advice and a plan to address real life issues and goals is even more important.