Women Need Greater Savings

Studies show that men do most of the savings, yet women need to save more than men for a number of reasons.

* The average woman spends 15% of her career out of the work force caring for her children and elderly parents

* For every year out of the work force, a woman has to work 5 years to recover the lost income, pension coverage and career promotion

* Women retirees receive about half the average pension benefits that men receive

* Fifty percent of working women are in relatively low paying jobs with no pensions

* One year past divorce the average mid-life woman remains single and earns an average income of $11,300

* Woman change jobs more frequently than men

* At some point in their lives 9 out of 10 women will be solely responsible for their finances

* Women live longer than men

* Elderly women are 3 times as likely to widowed than elderly men

* Health care needs of women are greater than men

* In 1999 women earned 76% of what men earned

Keep these statistics in mind when you decide to invest for your own future. Keeping separate retirement accounts isn't only a good idea - it may very well be a life saver.

All statistics taken from the Woman's Institute For A Secure Retirement and National Center For Woman's Retirement Research