How employers can support female employees’ financial, retirement wellness

However, the agency doesn’t offer a match on employees’ group RRSP contributions. “I’ve only heard of one or two [advertising] companies that would contribute to your RRSP — and that’s after you’ve worked for two years.

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“Advertising is a younger industry, so you get a little aged out. But that doesn’t mean you’re not planning for your future while you’re here. It would be nice if [the agency] could also match what I’m putting in because I’m putting time and energy into this place.”

Unlike Collins’ employer, Niagara Casinos automatically enrols employees into a defined contribution pension plan with a company match of three per cent. Jennifer Stassen, the company’s total rewards specialist, says she also contributes to the company’s voluntary group tax-free savings account.

In addition to retirement savings programs, the employer offers financial literacy campaigns, retirement education events and financial seminars covering topics such as living debt free, how couples can manage their money and financial considerations for women.

However, Stassen, age 46, says she worries about the future. “As a single woman, a big concern is being able save enough on my own to retire comfortably — and at a reasonable age.”

The amount of money that she may have available at retirement won’t be sufficient on its own and while Stassen knows she needs to save over and above her RRSP and TFSA contributions, she admits that it’s challenging on a single income.

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“My personal savings after bills, mortgage, insurance and basic living are well below what I should be doing to save enough to not worry in retirement about cost-of-living and medical expenses. What happens if I get sick? Can my retirement savings support a certain lifestyle that allows some travel or home renovation/repair or entertainment? There are a lot of considerations for retirement and I’m certainly already thinking about all of them from a financial perspective.”

A dynamic approach

While Stassen may still be several years away from retirement, other female employees have similar concerns, depending on their age, family and career status.

It’s at these various life stages where employers can support their employees’ financial wellness. Employers can make benefits more equitable and flexible by allowing employees to access them at different points in their lives, says Elisha Ribeiro, national sales director for integrated and group retirement services at the Canada Life Assurance Co.

One of the most important aspects of financial wellness is that employers communicate about retirement planning as early as possible, adds Christine van Staden, regional vice-president of group customer and national accounts at Canada Life.

“We truly look to focus on employees’ varying life stages. They need support throughout their life journeys. It’s important we recognize that and have programs, supports, solutions, products and financial goals as people go through these stages.”

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Women’s financial wellness also extends to dependants, including support for employees who are saving for their children’s post-secondary education, notes Shannon Blake, a professor at Toronto’s Seneca Polytechnic.

“Generally, [registered education savings plans] are slightly more straightforward than RRSPs because it’s relatively easier to make a good guess about how much money you’ll need. However, $2,500 plus the $500 the government puts in every year multiplied by 18 is only $54,000, which isn’t enough for university and living expenses for four years. You need to be saving in a TFSA or something similar as well if you want to fully fund a dependent.”

Though Blake, age 41, figured this out on her own, she admits it would’ve been easier if her employer had provided her with financial advice.

While saving for children’s education is important, so is paying off student debt, notes van Staden. “Women coming out of post-secondary institutions with student debt typically don’t feel they have the means . . . to save [for retirement].”

Caregiving challenges

All Canadians are faced with life events that impact their finances, but research indicates that women are disproportionately impacted, particularly where caregiving is involved.

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A 2015 Statistics Canada report found that 3.3 per cent of women provided care to an adult family member or friend on any given day, compared to 1.2 per cent of men. Similarly, a 2024 report by Ontario’s pay equity office found 37.4 per cent of women participate in childcare, compared to only 25.3 per cent of men.

Having just returned from her second parental leave, Roni Gellert, a 38-year-old creative director for a Toronto-based advertising agency, says she received six weeks of top-up for her first leave. This time around, she received six months of pay.

“What I didn’t anticipate was that I was taxed differently. Because of the six months of top-up and employment insurance, I owed about $3,000.”

On the other hand, while Blake was eligible for 52 weeks of top-up pay (up to 93 per cent of her salary) during her leave, she opted for 38 weeks so she could share the leave with her partner and avoid daycare costs. “Because of the union, I’m not penalized financially. My salary continues to rise at the same rate, whether or not I take parental leave.”

Of course, parental leave and caregiving has an impact on women’s savings simply because they’re out of the workforce and, in some cases, women may opt to stay at home until their children reach school age.

“Planning for retirement savings is more critical because women’s working time in bringing in those funds becomes diminished because they have fewer years to save,” says van Staden.

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However, there are exceptions. Maureen McLaughlin, a subject matter expert in analytical development at Thermo Fisher Scientific, says she didn’t take parental leave when she and her husband adopted their son at age nine. “He just went right to school. We put him in a before- and after-school program, of course, but I didn’t miss work because of it.”

Thermo Fisher offers a group RRSP and significant bonuses, she says, noting she also allocates a percentage of her pay to a personal TFSA.

However, it’s challenging to know just how much money she has saved. During the coronavirus pandemic, economic volatility caused many investments to increase and decrease in value. In addition, when Thermo Fisher purchased Patheon Inc. (her former employer) in 2017, her investments and savings were taken over by Sun Life Financial Inc. McLaughlin, age 66, is now looking to consolidate everything through her husband’s financial provider. “I’m probably less worried than somebody that’s totally on their own. I do have a husband and my house is paid for. I guess if I went broke, I could sell my house.”

Like Thermo Fisher, Gellert’s agency doesn’t offer a pension plan — nor does it offer a group RRSP either. Instead, employees contribute to their personal retirement savings. “I would consider that a financial concern, even though I make a very comfortable living. Am I saving enough for the future to be able to retire at all or to be able to retire comfortably? Seemingly, no one’s salaries can keep pace [with the cost of living]. I don’t think there’s anything my employer can do to alleviate the concern, because they’re affected by it, too. It’s a macro issue.”

Early in her tenure, Gellert asked the director of finance if the agency offered employer matching. “I was told, ‘They’re working on it.’ That was about six or seven years ago and I never heard about it again. . . . I don’t think they’re opposed to financial discussions. I just think they’re not necessarily top of mind.”

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Although she’d like to see her employer offer group RRSP matching, she would be satisfied with regular check-ins with the finance department. “It’s like a financial review to say, ‘This is what you’re making — without asking what you do with your money or how you spend it — we just want to make sure you’re OK.’”

It’s important for employees to understand that discussing finances with their employer is a normal practice and to not be apprehensive when receiving such communications, says van Staden.

“Women are reluctant about the confidential nature of their status. Sometimes we don’t feel we’re entitled to advice. But advice should be accessible to everyone, to get help from a professional who will walk them through their financial journeys.”

More education

Advice goes hand in hand with education.

Employers can offer digital tools so employees can dig deeper into financial information that applies to their situation. These self-serve resources, along with webinars and events that cover financial topics, will go a long way in educating individuals, says Ribeiro. “We believe financial literacy impacts not only women, but the population in general.”

While Gellert agrees, she also finds that financial conversations can be difficult. “Not because they’re personal, but because you’re not prepared as a young person to understand RRSPs, TFSAs or RESPs. You don’t know what questions to even ask until you’re suddenly in a position where you’re having concerns. You’re always kind of a little bit behind the eight ball.”

While she has some financial knowledge, it’s an area in which she’s interested in learning more, says Blake. “I think . . . the best laid plans we all made five years ago were with certain assumptions about [interest rates] and it does make me concerned that [personal finances] won’t keep pace with the rate of inflation.”

Brooke Smith is a freelance writer.

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