A recent national study found that Chilean women save half as much money as as their male counterparts.

On average, a woman who retires at the age of 60 will have saved 12.5 million Chilean pesos (a little more than US$24.600). By contrast, the average male worker will have saved this much by the age of 49. As the average Chilean male retires at the age of 65, he has the capacity to stash away and average of 23 million Chilean pesos (more than US$45,000)

In terms of social security savings, a national superannuation fund shows similar figures. On average, a male contributor is likely to show savings in the region of 7.1 million Chilean pesos (nearly US$14,000), while the average woman contributor will possess literally half as much, or 3.7 million Chilean pesos (nearly US$7300).

According to Chilean Undersecretary of Welfare Claudio Reyes, the difference in savings is caused by career breaks after marriage or childbirth. For those who women who remain in work, Reyes said, the difference in income between men and women can often equate to a difference in savings – despite the improvement in women’s rights over the past decade.

Roberto Fuente, from the national Superannuation Guild, suggested another factor: women are legally required to cash their pensions at age 60 - five years earlier than men. As a result, they are given less time to accrue their savings.

However, recent changes in the National Superannuation Reform may eventually bring a halt to this trend. According to early projections by Undersecretary Reyes, amendments to gender-based income inequities could bridge the gap by 2050 – a distant but realistic date, he assures.

But Margarita Errazuriz of CommunidadMujer, a national women’s rights group, says reason lies elsewhere. “Instead of just shifting policies, what we need to do is guide the female workforce into productive vocations with higher wage returns,” she said. “Then, we could eventually hope to raise the retirement age.”

The fiscal inequality between Chile’s men and women is one of many gender-based inequities that trouble the nation.

As recently as October, the World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked Chile 64th in terms of gender equality, making the nation one of the worst for women’s rights in South America (ST, October 2009).

SOURCES: El Mercurio, La Tercera
By Thomas Derricott ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )