ANZ to offer free super advice

The new measures were announced by ANZ today and are designed to help women better engage with their financial futures and address the structural bias and subsequent financial disadvantages they face in the workplace and in retirement.

This announcement follows ANZ's release of a new research report into gender inequality in Australia which found that over their lifetime, Australian women earn on average $700,000 less than men.

ANZ chief executive officer Mike Smith said, "Promoting diversity and gender equality is a priority in our business. This includes pay equality and an equal representation of women in leadership roles.

"Much more still needs to be done though to achieve full gender equality in the workplace and while we recognise we're not there yet, today's announcement is about rethinking how we address the imbalances women face in the workplace and in retirement," Mr Smith said.

Other measures include super contributions on parental leave to be paid for up to 24 months, up from 12 months, for Australia-based employees on their return to work and top-up superannuation payments of $500 per annum to ANZ's permanent and fixed-term female employees in Australia to address the gap in retirement savings.

ANZ chief executive for global wealth, Joyce Phillips, said, "Women play a critical role in global economies – however, our report shows they can still earn up to 36 per cent less than men and retire with around half the superannuation.

"Over time, we believe these new measures will help improve the financial security of women at ANZ by directly targeting the areas of advice, superannuation and financial education," Ms Phillips said.