Women take 20 years more than men to earn £1m

WOMEN must work almost 20 years longer than men before they have earned £1million, research shows.

On average, female workers will have earned a seven-figure sum before tax by the age of 69 years and seven months.

But their male colleagues will have sailed past the million mark long before – at the age of 50 years and eight months.

The worrying gender pay gap means that most women will be pensioners before they become ‘income millionaires’.

Meanwhile, most men will comfortably hit this target at least 15 years before they reach the State pension age.

However, the latest figures show that the gap is narrowing. Three years ago, women had to work until they were 72 to earn £1million – while the age for men has remained stagnant.

The study, by financial firm Prudential, found that the average worker will earn their first million when they are 56 and six months old – but will lose £212,000 of this to tax and national insurance.

Workers in the financial sector f are the best, reaching the £1million mark at a youthful 41, but those working in the hotel and food industry will not reach this point until they are 94.

Stan Russell, from Prudential, said: ‘ The welcome news of an increase in incomes for women is tempered by the fact that many of them still won’t get to reach their million pound pay day before they retire.’

The figures, which were calculated using Office for National Statistics data on average UK wages, found that a man who started work at 18 and earned the average income for their age would have earned £1.5million by his 65th birthday, while a woman would have earned just £910,000.

Sarah Pennells, from money website SavvyWoman.co.uk, said women would be ‘ horrified’ to find out that they have to work for almost 20 years longer than men to reach their first million.

She said: ‘We know that, despite the Equal Pay Act 50 years ago, the gender pay gap still exists. On top of that, many women find it harder to get senior roles if they’ve taken time out to look after their children, plus many women in their 50s work part time, either because they can’t get a full-time job or because they have caring responsibilities.

‘These are some of the reasons why women will be pensioners before they’re millionaires.’

Adam Memon, of the Centre for Policy Studies, added: ‘These figures show that despite a fall in the gender pay gap in recent years, it remains large.

‘The pay gap increases significantly for women in their mid30s, which suggests that there is also a motherhood penalty faced by some women.’