Women to get "shocking" £434 a month less than men in retirement

Women face pension pots £106,000 smaller than men's to see them through retirement, a new report reveals.

Working part-time to balance caring responsibilities for children and then ageing parents has the biggest impact on women’s ability to save for their future.

It results in a 47% reduction in pension savings for women by their late 50s, compared to men.

By their 60s women typically have £51,000 in pension savings, just a third of an average man’s £156,500 nest egg.

That pot translates to a monthly income £640.83 for the average man, compared to a paltry £206.67 for the average woman - a gap of £434.

Fawcett Society chief executive Sam Smethers said: "The shocking pensions gap that women experience is a result of a lifetime of income and workplace inequality."

Mum's the word: Families with just a female parent were equally well adjusted says the study (Getty)

While its good news that the proportion of women working is now 71.4% - the highest female employment rate since records began in 1971 - two in five are working part-time.

That could mean many don’t meet the £10,000 a year threshold in a single job to be auto enrolled into a workplace pension and will miss out on saving for their retirement, and receiving contributions from their employer.

This is compounded by the fact that women earn less than men, the gender pay gap is currently 18%, and they live on average 3.7 more years than men. So, much smaller pensions will need to last a lot longer.

The report from The Pensions Policy Institute and NOW:Pensions found the biggest harm to women’s pension saving occurs in their 30s. The typical age when they are likely to take time off work caring for children.

However, many women in their 50s have moved into part-time work to look after their ageing parents or grandchildren - leaving them falling even further behind their male counterparts in retirement savings.

Joanne Segars, interim chair of Trustees NOW:Pensions, said: “Pension savings can be difficult, especially for women. Not only are women typically paid less, but they are much more likely to work part-time or take time out of the workforce to care for children or elderly relatives.

“This time out has a huge impact and the part-time pensions penalty can’t afford to be ignored.

"Small changes to auto enrolment could make a big difference for women but to really bridge the gap more need to be done to help mums remain in the workplace.”