Figure 3. Simulated Postretirement Wealth and Income by Gender.

In this simulation of postretirement wealth and income by gender over the course of retirement years for the representative woman as compared with her male counterpart in the pre–gender equity initiatives (GEI), time from retirement to death was 17.25 years for the woman and 13.22 years for the man. Panel A shows the rate of spending required for each gender to use all postretirement wealth and income prior to death. Owing to the cumulative effect of salary and promotional disparities over her career course, a female faculty would be required spend her retirement savings at a rate 40% slower than her male counterpart to compensate for less retirement savings and longer life expectancy. Panel B demonstrates both genders spending postretirement wealth and income at an identical rate (set to the rate used by male faculty in A). Were she to spend her retirement wealth at the same rate as her male counterpart, her resources would be depleted 7 years prior to her death (represented by deficit of funds below the zero line).