The gender gap extends to retirement plan savers, Nationwide says

There's a notable gender gap in retirement confidence and readiness among US workers, particularly as an increasing number of Americans reach the age of 65, according to a recent survey conducted by the Nationwide Retirement Institute.

The survey of 1,200 participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans found marked disparities in how men and women view and manage their retirement savings.

While one-quarter (23 percent) of women polled believe they're not on the right track for retirement, that concern was less prevalent among male participants (15 percent). Similarly, 41 percent of women have either a negative or neutral outlook on their retirement planning, compared to 29 percent of men.

The In-Plan Protected Retirement survey also revealed that women are less likely to have reached key financial milestones, such as establishing an emergency fund or adjusting their retirement investment allocations.

A gender gap in views on the current economic environment can’t be helping, with women more likely than men to express concern over how a recession, market volatility, or rising costs could hit their retirement savings.

More than half of the women surveyed (52 percent) said they were worried about outliving their retirement income, yet just over one-eighth have taken steps to diversify their investment portfolios (13 percent) or sought out investment options that provide economic protection (15 percent).

That continues a theme from Nationwide’s ninth annual Advisor Authority Survey published earlier this month, which found that roughly four in ten single women (43 percent) and married women (40 percent) flagged the higher cost of living as one of the biggest long-term challenges threatening their retirement portfolio.

"Women are actively participating in their employer-sponsored retirement plans alongside their male counterparts, but they're also facing a variety of challenges that can make navigating their retirement journey more complex," Cathy Marasco, leader of protected retirement for Nationwide Retirement Solutions, said in a statement.

While 60 percent of women savers saying it’s a top challenge to project how long their retirement savings must last, only 11 percent have created a strategy to turn their nest egg into retirement income.

Beyond that, a majority of women in the survey were uneasy over the cost of health care (69 per cent), the possibility that Social Security will gone by the time they retire (68 percent) and the task of managing expenses and lifestyle choices during retirement (52 percent).

It’s no surprise, then, that the majority of women surveyed shared an interest in retirement solutions that offer a stable, pension-like income. Three-quarters of female respondents expressed a desire for their 401(k) plans to include options for guaranteed lifetime income, and 90 percent indicated they would likely transfer their savings to an in-plan protected retirement solution if available.

“Women who participated in our study say a pension-like income stream would reduce their stress, increase their financial security and improve their peace of mind,” Marasco said. “It's time for employers to extend those same benefits to today's workers by offering a guaranteed lifetime income investment solutions through their qualified employer-sponsored plan.”