Printer-Friendly Version
Archived News Release Caution: Information may be out of date. Archived News Release Caution: Information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202)219-8211
Women can help other women shatter the glass ceiling of retirement by
joining with the U. S. Labor Department in a new initiative to better prepare
women for retirement, Secretary of Labor Robert B. Reich told more than 1,000
business and professional women today. He urged them to enlist local
organizations in the department's effort to educate women about their pensions
and to help disseminate pension information to other women.
Reich distributed the first copies of a pamphlet today--"Women and
Pensions: What Women Need to Know and Do,"--to members of the Business and
Professional Women/USA, who met in Washington, D.C. The pamphlet is designed to
help women evaluate their pension plans and plan for their retirement.
"Despite progress in the area of pay parity," Reich said, "less than
half of all working women have pension coverage. The problem of pension
inequity, though, is largely a product of women's career patterns and the
realities they face in the work world. This pamphlet is a first step toward
giving women information to preserve invaluable pension benefits."
The new pamphlet combines basic facts about retirement benefits,
identifies sources of additional information and offers practical tips on
retirement.
Every woman needs to:
- Find out if her employer has a pension plan and whether she
qualifies to participate.
- Find out as much as she can about qualifying for benefits.
- Find out what rights she has to her husband's pension benefits in
the event of divorce or legal separation.
- Check on her social security benefits, as she may be entitled to
benefits as a spouse, an ex-spouse or a widow.
- Finally, take advantage of other ways to save for retirement, such
as the individual retirement accounts, simplified employee pensions or Keogh
plans.
"Today's woman faces a multitude of challenges. You can take control of
your financial destiny. I hope this information will help you and other women
reach real economic security and independence. But, the time to save for
retirement is now," said Reich.
For a free copy of the "Women and Pensions" pamphlet, call the
publication hotline of the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration at
202/219-9247.
Archived News Release Caution: Information may be out of date.
|