Catherine Tinsley: “Tax Season Highlights The Gender Pay Gap” (Huffington Post)

Posted in News  |  Tagged

The Huffington Post

“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, but death and taxes,” declared Ben Franklin. We hope to avoid adding the gender wage gap to the list as well. Tax Day is yet another reminder of the persistent and pervasive gender pay gap, the corrosive effect it has on women’s lifetime earnings and therefore, on their retirement security. Sadly, according to the Certified Equality Professional Institute, on average women have 50 percent smaller account balances in their retirement plans than men. Just as Equal Pay Day on April 4 highlighted the annual total income effect of the gender wage gap, April 18 highlights the wage gap’s impact on the amount of taxes women owe. By extension, our taxable earnings are a benchmark of our present and future financial security. For women, tax preparation surfaces some painful facts of financial life: their incomes and their tax-deductible contributions to their retirement savings plans tend to be lower than those of men.