The march forward to super on paid parental leave

Women kicked goals in 2022. In 2023, even more will be won.  

In most circumstances, superannuation is paid on your annual leave, sick leave and long service leave. But did you know that when you take paid parental leave, you don’t get any super?  

Unfortunately, a lot of working parents find out this fact too late. But the situation is unfair from the start.  

Women face a horrendous superannuation gap and leave the workforce only to retire into poverty. That’s because the typical gap between a 60 year old woman and a man the same age is $200,000.  

The sheer difference in dollars is for a number of reasons, including the gender pay gap. Caring roles come into play too. With women more likely to use paid parental leave, the lack of super payments contributes even more to this inequality. 

Off the back of a massive year of progress for working women, this International Women’s Day will help keep the momentum going. Union members have been campaigning day in, day out for super on paid parental leave and won’t stop until it happens.  

And guess what? If you are in a unionised workplace, you’re more likely to have access to higher rates of superannuation payments and better paid leave entitlements in your workplace agreements. If you’re not yet a member, it’s all the more reason to join.

Cover photo credit: Johny Goerend on Unsplash