Women, work, and retirement : issues and questions for policy and practice

Advances in both the quantity and quality of life, unparalleled over the past 45 centuries, shaped a longevity revolution in the 20th century. At the same time, a similar revolution in gender occurred in the workforce as women entered the paid labor market in unprecedented numbers. With women now representing almost half of the United States labor force, women's work-family challenges across the developmental stages of adulthood have far-reaching social and economic implications. The extent to which working women stay in or leave the labor force as they age, changes in their work-family needs and concerns, and aging-related issues facing working women will have an impact on macro- and micro-level social changes in the coming decades. Based on a Work and Retirement Survey of Business and Professional Women, sociodemographic characteristics, work attitudes and perceptions, and developmental issues of women across three stages of adulthood were examined. Questions addressed included the importance of time for selected activities, role identity, motivations to work, importance of selected employee benefits, career-related issues, conceptions of retirement, and financial preparedness for retirement. Family and work issues, combined with individual developmental differences associated with gender and aging, were found to present both challenges and opportunities.