Superannuation

Prior to 1973, the Council was concerned at the comparatively few women who belonged to superannuation schemes, as participation in a superannuation scheme is a step towards women's economic independence. In 1973, the Council completed a study on the implications for women on the national superannuation scheme.^[85] The Council welcomed the provisions in the New Zealand Superannuation Act 1974 that contributions made by a woman in her early working life prior to children must be retained in a superannuation fund to provide for a pension as it gave married women financial independence. The Council saw that the downside to the legislation was the creation of further inequalities between employed and non-employed married women. In 1975, NACEW welcomed the change in the Government Superannuation Scheme for people returning to the government service after a gap of not more than five years to reactivate superannuation contributions made during previous service.

Further work was done in 1991 when the Task Force on Private Provision for Retirement was established. NACEW was aware that fewer women were able to make regular contributions to superannuation schemes, partly because of their lower incomes and broken careers. Thus women participants pay in only a quarter of the contributions made by men. NACEW wanted the Task Force to examine the particular needs of women, especially those on low incomes many of whom were Māori and Pacific.

In 1997, NACEW wrote to several Ministers supporting the set of principles, developed by the Ministry of Women's Affairs, to assist in the designing of the Retirement Savings Scheme so that the scheme did not disadvantage women.

This topic has not been a consistently high priority for NACEW. The Retirement Commission was established in 1995 and a part of its role is to look at issues in saving for retirement for women. Diana Crossan, previously a ministerial appointee on NACEW, is currently the Retirement Commissioner.