Women's retirement savings hurt by tax laws.

• Author: Mildon, Marsha
• Position: News And notes

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) has awarded University of British Columbia law professor, Claire Young, an expert on the impact of tax policy changes on Canadian women, the 2003 Therese F.-Casgrain Fellowship.

"Women's ability to save for their retirement continues to be compromised by the fact that they more often fall in the category of low-income earners," said Marc Renaud, president of SSHRC. "They make up the majority of part-time or seasonal workers, homemakers and caregivers for their families, including their aging parents."

Professor Young will examine the negative impact on women of existing tax laws that give deductions for contributions to Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) and workplace pension plans.

"While financial institutions strongly promote RRSPs and there are extensive tax breaks for retirement savings, the ability to benefit from them depends on having income to make contributions," said Professor Young. "An additional challenge for women is that as part-time or casual workers they...