Julie Hunt | Face to Face Finance
Despite the menopause affecting roughly 50% of the population, it’s often left unspoken, and its symptoms misunderstood. In fact, a survey found that 91% of women aged 50-64 felt that there was little to no acknowledgement of the menopause within their workplace. This can lead to struggles at work being attributed to poor performance rather than medical symptoms, such as brain fog, hot flushes, anxiety, and fatigue.
Sadly, this can in turn negatively affect financial security, and result in reduced work hours, lower paid positions, and for 25% of menopausal women, it can lead to considerations of leaving employment all together.
What is the menopause?
The menopause mostly affects women aged 50-64 but can affect people in their 30-40s, and some transgender men/non-binary people. Certain medical treatments such as chemotherapy can also trigger menopause.
Menopause is a perfectly natural change in the balance of the body’s hormones that occurs with age, but despite the millions of workers affected, it is often misunderstood.
How can the menopause impact finances?
1 in 5 menopausal women suffer with extreme symptoms, and 75% of those experiencing symptoms feel it affects their performance at work. It is also not uncommon to hear of women reducing their hours, opting to work below their skill level, or turning down promotions due to their symptoms.
Menopausal symptoms are therefore a factor in the gender pay gap, which in April 2022 showed that women in full time work earn 8.3% less than men. There are several factors that can be attributed to this, but some key factors are age, occupation, region, and childcare requirements.
How can the menopause affect pensions?
The gender pension gap is the percentage difference of how much female pensioners have compared to male pensioners. In 2021 the gender pension gap was 33.5%, and in 2018 women in the EU aged 60+ received a pension that was on average 30% lower than that of a man.
Menopausal symptoms can affect how much you can put away for your pension, as some women may struggle to keep up with full time work without the proper provisions and accommodations in place. With women in the UK retiring at 64 on average, and menopause symptoms lasting up to 4 years (and sometimes longer), there is a huge amount of time where women could be missing out on putting money into their pension pot, and benefiting from employer contributions.
What can be done to help?
If you are worried about your pension when it comes to menopause, the best thing you can do is plan ahead, and stay informed about your pension and the menopause. If you are an employer, you should be aware of how the menopause may affect your employees, and the accommodations you can make. These could include offering flexible working, mental health support, regular breaks, and a supportive environment that acknowledges the struggles that can come with the menopause.
If you’re currently experiencing the menopause and are worried about you financial stability, there is lots of help available through the NHS website and your local GP.
Looking for financial advice?
If you are looking for financial advice or pension support, contact our experts at Face to Face Finance. Whether you are experiencing menopause or would just like to plan ahead, we are always here to help you secure your financial future.
