Women's National Pension Benefits Half of Men's: Structural Gap Remains Severe

A significant gender gap has been identified in the receipt of National Pension benefits.

The average National Pension benefit for women is only about half that of men, and analysis suggests that the majority of this disparity stems from structural environmental factors rather than individual qualifications.

According to the report, "Status of Gender Gaps in the Public Pension System and Review of Countermeasures," published by researchers Yoo Hee-won, Kim Hye-jin, and Hong Jeong-min at the National Pension Research Institute on the 20th, the average monthly pension benefit for recipients aged 60 and older as of April 2025 was 824,000 won for men, while women received only 407,000 won, a more than twofold difference.

The pension system enrollment rate for men was 76.5%, which is 9.5 percentage points (p) higher than the 67.0% for women.

The reason for this wide gap in retirement income is that inequalities in the labor market throughout one's life and the unequal distribution of caregiving responsibilities translate directly into pension disparities.

In particular, the study confirmed a structural path where career interruptions for women after their 30s lead to gaps in pension premium payments, concentrating the risk of having no pension on women.

Currently, the population aged 18 to 59 that falls into the blind spot of the National Pension system stands at approximately 10.83 million, accounting for 36.2% of the total.

Of this group, women account for 5.801 million, or 53.6%, indicating a higher proportion of women in the blind spot compared to men.

By age group, while the proportion of men in the blind spot was higher in their 20s, the proportion for women began to surpass that of men from their 30s onward, reflecting differences in employment patterns between genders.

The situation for those in their 50s, who are nearing retirement, is even more severe.

Even if they pay premiums as much as possible until the age of enrollment, the proportion of potential non-pensioners who fail to secure the right to an old-age pension (which requires 120 months of contributions) starts at 16.7% for women at age 50 and reaches nearly half, at 49.4%, by age 59.

This suggests that the risk of having no pension in old age is structurally concentrated on women from the age of 55 onwards.

When the research team analyzed the causes of the gender pension gap using statistical methodology, they found that 72.5% of the average pension gap between men and women is attributable to structural inequalities that cannot be explained solely by observable differences such as individual education levels or length of service.

The researchers suggested that to resolve these issues, an integrated response that links labor market and pension policies is urgently needed, going beyond simple fine-tuning of the system.

To prevent future gaps, they proposed proactive measures such as eliminating structural discrimination in the labor market and strengthening the socialization of care. For ex-post corrections to mitigate existing gaps, they suggested specific alternatives, including the transition to universal care credits, enhancing the effectiveness of survivor and split pensions, and reforming the basic pension.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.