New research published by financial services business MetLife Australia has found menopause can mean an average $40,000 hit to women’s superannuation balance. In too many cases, the symptoms associated with menopause and perimenopause are so bad, women are forced to leave the workforce permanently or temporarily. Even if they remain working, the financial effects are seriously impacting women’s later lives.
Employer support, awareness and putting together a financial plan as early as possible can help support women’s financial and overall wellbeing during menopause and afterwards.
According to the findings from the Impacts of Menopause on Women’s Health and Wealth: MetLife’s Study on the Impacts of Menopause, just over half (53 per cent) of the 1,000-plus women and non-binary people surveyed for the research say menopause has impacted their financial health. Worryingly, this figure jumps to 70 per cent of respondents for those experiencing severe symptoms from menopause.
Further, MetLife’s research shows just under a third of women (32 per cent) say menopause symptoms have adversely influenced their career prospects or earning capacity.
“Menopause feels like it takes away a woman’s choice on when she wants to retire,” says Lina Saliba, MetLife’s chief customer and marketing officer.
Career handbrake
Sadly, a large number of women feel menopause is a career handbrake. According to MetLife’s survey, 34 per cent of women believe menopause symptoms have impacted their career for up to three years. Additionally 32 per cent say menopause has altered their careers due to factors like reduced working hours.
Career prospects aside, menopause significantly depletes women’s entitlements at work. The study found 30 per cent of women have used up their leave balance, including annual and sick leave, due to menopause symptoms. Approximately six per cent have taken extended leave, often unpaid. On average, women with moderate menopause symptoms take 6.4 days off work annually, while those with severe symptoms take 10 days off.
Most concerning is the revelation 14 per cent of women have left the workforce temporarily or retired earlier than anticipated due to menopause symptoms. This figure jumps to 22 per cent for those experiencing severe symptoms.
These statistics underscore the urgent need for workplaces to provide better support and understanding for women navigating menopause, ensuring they can continue to thrive both personally and professionally.
Menopause’s career consequences have flow-on financial effects, according to MetLife’s research. Overall, 40 per cent of women say that their financial position has been impacted by menopause. This figure rises to 57 per cent for those experiencing severe symptoms. Furthermore, 26 per cent of women say menopause has impacted their ability to contribute to their superannuation.
Among the 32 per cent of women who reported their menopause symptoms have negatively affected their career, 80 per cent say their financial position has been impacted by menopause and 58 per cent say menopause has impacted their ability to contribute to superannuation. A worrying 76 per cent believe menopause means they will have to work for longer and delay their retirement.
“About a third told us that they thought they were financially worse off because of menopause. Which means at a time when women should be at their peak, they are making decisions that stop their career from progressing,” says Saliba.
Not financially prepared
One of the most concerning findings is 57 per cent say they are not confident they will be financially prepared for the lifestyle they want to live in retirement and 42 per cent say the impact of menopause means they will retire with less superannuation or savings than they otherwise would have. The research demonstrates how greater awareness of menopause can change women’s lives.
“When we did qualitative research one of the constant comments was, ‘I wish I knew what the symptoms were and I wish I’d asked for help earlier about what I can do to minimise my symptoms’,” she adds
Talking to a financial adviser as early as possible can also help women to work through their options when it comes to their finances during menopause. This might include making sure to shop around for the best value insurance, home loan and other expenses.
“Everyone needs to have an idea about how to manage financially through different life stages, so this isn’t just something that women going through menopause need to do,” says Saliba.
“Having the support of a financial adviser as early as possible can help you put together a financial plan to model different scenarios around when you can retire and different career paths to get there,” she adds.
Employers play a pivotal role assisting women to negotiate financial and career challenges as they go through perimenopause and post-menopause. When women are supported by their employer as they go through this stage of life, only 14 per cent report menopause affecting their financial and career outlook.
“Work’s an interesting one because only one in five women are comfortable discussing menopause. Also, 47 per cent said they are masking their menopause symptoms at work because they don’t want anybody to know and they don’t want their boss to know,” says Saliba.
At the same time, nearly 60 per cent said their employer has a responsibility to support women going through menopause.
As an employer, MetLife has recognised how important it is to support women throughout their whole life, one of the reasons it now offers menopause leave. The insurer is also launching a new initiative that connects customers to a specialist nurse to talk through how menopause is affecting them and talk through steps they can take to alleviate symptoms.
The menopause journey
During a virtual one-on-one consultation, the nurse will be able to provide guidance to members about the menopause journey. Members can also access Metlife’s 360Health health and wellbeing platform, which has a range of services including nutrition, Mental Health Assist and the newly launched Menopause Support.
“There’s a real opportunity for employers to do simple things, like offer flexible working arrangements such as the chance to work from home more often, or options to come in to work later in the day. There’s also potential for workplaces to build awareness about how menopause affects people in different ways, to create a shared understanding across the community,” says Saliba.
Giving people a helping hand as they go through menopause also has business benefits.
“If women are more supported at work, they are going to be more engaged, productive and more loyal. On the flip side, when they are not supported, their motivation, mental capacity, confidence and productivity are impacted. Imagine how much more productive they would be in the workforce and for the organisation if all those women had the support they need?” she says.
For more information, visit the Menopause support page: Menopause | Metlife 360health Australia.
