By Lynda Spence, Family & Consumer Sciences Extension Agent at UF/IFAS Extension-Marion County
Reviewed by Martie Gillen, PhD, Department of Family, Youth, and Community Sciences, University of Florida
On March 8, International Women’s Day is celebrated in nations around the world. This day of recognition, founded in 1911, celebrates the progress women have made towards equality and freedom, while also focusing on goals that women have yet to achieve. On International Women’s Day 2014, we’re looking at an issue that’s crucial to women’s independence and success: money!
When it comes to money and financial management, women definitely face unique issues. Some of the numbers may really surprise you. Women need to learn more about their money because women:
- Earn approximately 71% of what men earn
- Are less financially secure than men
- Are more likely than men to work in part time jobs
- Founded twice as many start-ups as men between 1997 and 2007
- Earn only a little more than half of what men earn when self-employed
- Are more likely than men to be single parents
- Have the lowest median income of any type of household when living alone
- Take an average of 10 years out of the workforce for caregiving (as compared to 2 years for men)
- Are less likely to participate in retirement plans than men
- Are far less confident than men that they will meet their financial goals
- Feel less prepared than men to make wise financial decisions
- Tend to be more conservative investors than men
- Focus on the family–but their risk aversion may undermine their financial success
- Live longer than men
- Are more likely than men to live alone and/or in poverty in their later years
Wow, that is quite a laundry list! So where do you start? How can women learn more about managing their money, one topic at a time? University of Florida/ IFAS Extension has your best interests at heart. They have made it easier to begin to put your finger on your financial pulse. Learn more at the UF-IFAS article series Women and Money: Unique Issues. Or, if you live in sunny Florida and would rather attend a financial management short course where money discussions occur in a relaxed, yet structured, educational environment, contact your Florida county Extension office. And take a look at this video on women and money, from UF-IFAS Extension’s Central District:
(Photo credit: Handful of Paper Money by Spirit-Fire. CC BY 2.0.)
References:
Duke, E. (2010). Women and Money: Challenging the Myths. Retrieved from http://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/duke20100501a.htm
Prudential. (2013). Financial Experience and Behaviors Among Women: 2012-2013 Prudential Research Study. Retrieved from http://www.prudential.com/media/managed/Pru_Women_Study.pdf
Social Security Administration. (2013). Calculators: Life Expectancy. Retrieved from http://www.ssa.gov/planners/lifeexpectancy.htm
US Census Bureau. (2011). Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/p60-239.pdf
US Census Bureau. (2008). American Community Survey. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/acs/www/
Women-Owned Businesses in the 21st Century. (2010). Prepared by the Economics and Statistics Administration, for the White House Council on Women and Girls.
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