Differences in pay and opportunity can compound over time, affecting women’s long-term financial security and retirement outcomes.
MADISON, Wis.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Equal Pay Day marks the point in the year when women’s earnings catch up to what men earned the year before. While the date is symbolic, Summit Credit Union notes that its implications extend far beyond annual pay comparisons. Summit Credit Union CEO Kim Sponem highlights how pay disparities impact women’s retirement security, urging employers to adopt equitable compensation practices.
Equal Pay Day Is About More Than Today’s Paycheck
Most people assume that poverty in retirement comes down to poor choices—failing to save enough, spending too much or not planning early. While those can contribute to financial insecurity in a significant way, it is not a factor for everyone. It can be used as just a comforting story, because it suggests that financial insecurity is avoidable if you just do everything right.
But for millions of women, that’s not how it works.
Retirement insecurity isn’t about a lack of discipline or effort. It’s about how careers unfold over decades—and how early decisions around pay, promotion and opportunity shape outcomes far down the road.
Equal Pay Day is a symbolic date that marks how far into the new year women must work to earn what men earned the year before. This year, it lands on March 26, and even further out for women of color. But the implications go far beyond a single date on the calendar.
Roots of Retirement Inequality
Over a 40-year career, the average woman earns over a half-million dollars less than her male counterpart. That difference doesn’t just affect take-home pay today. Lower lifetime earnings mean smaller retirement balances, lower employer matches, and reduced Social Security benefits later on, meaning gaps continue even in retirement. And for women of color, the gaps are much larger.
The result: Women are far more likely to experience poverty in retirement. In one national survey, 59% of women and 81% of low-income women said they don’t earn enough to save for retirement1. U.S. Census Bureau data2 show that half of women ages 55 to 66 have no personal retirement savings.
If you are a leader or employer, this matters. Because the conditions we create at work play a major role in whether hard work actually translates into long-term financial security.
The Power of Pay Practices
What’s striking is how small these differences often are at the beginning.
A starting salary that’s just a few thousand dollars lower. A slower first promotion. A missed opportunity early on. But raises, bonuses and retirement contributions are all calculated as a percentage of pay. What feels modest in year one compounds year after year. By the time retirement is in sight, the disparity has grown and there’s very little room left to catch up.
For years, we’ve told women they need to negotiate more aggressively. While negotiation skills matter, research shows women who negotiate often face social and professional backlash that men do not. They’re more likely to be labeled “difficult” or “demanding” for the same behavior. Framing negotiation as the solution places responsibility on individuals while leaving the underlying system unchanged.
The real issue isn’t who negotiates better—it’s that negotiation itself introduces unnecessary variability into starting pay. When compensation depends on who asks, inequities are embedded from day one. A more equitable approach is to remove negotiation as a variable altogether and base starting pay on the role, scope and market. Ending the practice of asking candidates about prior salary accomplishes the same goal. Anchoring today’s pay to past compensation often carries forward earlier disparities, unintentionally widening gaps over time.
Equal pay within roles is essential—but access to higher-paying roles matters just as much. Women remain underrepresented in senior positions where base pay, bonuses and retirement benefits are strongest. According to McKinsey’s Women in the Workplace research3, for every 100 men promoted to manager, only 93 women are promoted—and just 74 women of color. When advancement slows early, lifetime earnings slow with it.
Another critical inflection point is caregiving. Women who step away from the workforce to care for children or aging parents often return at lower pay or in reduced roles—effectively resetting years of progress. That reset can permanently alter earning trajectories and retirement savings. Men generally do not experience the same long-term penalty.
Time spent caregiving should pause a career—not penalize it. Reentry pay should reflect the role and the current market, not outdated compensation. Prior experience should remain fully credited. Advancement opportunities should remain open. And caregiving leave should be normalized for everyone, not treated as a career detour.
What Leaders Can Do to Close the Gap
Leaders don’t control every factor that affects retirement security. But we do control hiring practices, advancement pathways and compensation policies. Eliminating negotiated starting salaries, ending salary history questions, tracking pay equity data, and monitoring representation in leadership are all practical steps within reach of every organization.
Closing the gender pay gap isn’t only about fairness. It strengthens families, communities, and the broader economy. When hard work has a fair chance of paying off over a lifetime, retirement security becomes more attainable for the women who have earned it.
Equal Pay Day is not just a reminder of how far we still have to go—it’s a test of leadership. The choices organizations make today will determine whether decades of effort translate into lasting security tomorrow.
Kim Sponem Bio
Kim Sponem has been CEO/President of Summit Credit Union, Wisconsin’s largest credit union, since 2002. She has led Summit’s growth from $200 million in assets to over $8.3 billion with more than 276,915 members. A renowned thought leader, Sponem paved the way for addressing challenges through innovative programs and is a committed advocate of women building stronger financial futures.
Under Sponem’s leadership, Summit is the number one mortgage lender in Wisconsin, and the number one provider of Small Business Administration loans among credit unions in the state for more than a decade. In 2025, Summit was named Large Business of the Year by In Business magazine. Sponem’s commitment to financial education and workplace culture has led Summit to win four Governor’s Financial Literacy Awards, including the Legacy Award, and to be recognized as a Top Workplace and Best Place to Work in the Madison area, Milwaukee and the USA.
Sponem has been inducted into America’s Credit Union Museum and the CUES Hall of Fame. In 2024, she was also recognized by the Wisconsin Credit Union League Foundation as a Legend of the Movement for her service, commitment and impact on the credit union movement. In 2025, she was named a Wisconsin 275 leader by BizTimes Media and a Notable Credit Union Leader by BizTimes Milwaukee. In Business Magazine named Sponem a Power 100 Leader in 2025 and 2024, and one of Madison’s 25 Most Influential People. Madison Magazine awarded her the Brian Howell Excellence in Innovation Award for leadership in innovative financial education.
Sponem serves on several boards including the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, TruStage Insurance, Wisconsin Physicians Service (WPS) Corporation and the United Way of Dane County.
Sponem earned a B.S. degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her MBA from Edgewood College. She has over 35 years of financial sector experience.
About Summit Credit Union
Established in 1935, Summit Credit Union is a member-owned financial cooperative. Summit holds $8.3 billion in assets and has more than 276,915 members and 964 employees across 58 locations throughout Wisconsin. Since 2002, Kim Sponem has been CEO & President of Summit Credit Union, formerly known as CUNA Credit Union/Great Wisconsin Credit Union.
In 2025, Summit was named “Large Business of the Year” by In Business magazine for Wisconsin’s capital region. The credit union was also recognized for continued excellence in employee engagement as a Top Workplace USA by USA Today for the fifth consecutive year and a Top Workplace in the Madison area by the Wisconsin State Journal six years in a row. This marks the third straight year The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has named Summit a Top Workplace in Milwaukee. Summit was also named to Forbes list of America’s Best-In-State Credit Unions 2025, as well as one of America’s Best Credit Unions by Newsweek. Additionally, and representative of its focus on financial education, Summit received the Governor’s Financial Literacy Award in 2010, 2014 and 2016 and the Governor’s Financial Literacy Award – Legacy in 2019.
For more information, visit summitcreditunion.com or call 608-243-5000 or 800-236-5560.
For additional media information, visit summitcreditunion.com/about-summit/press-room or follow Summit on Facebook and Instagram.
=========================
Sources:
- https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/spotlighting-womens-retirement-security
- https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/spotlighting-womens-retirement-security
- https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/women-in-the-workplace
Contacts
Summit Credit Union
608-243-5000 or 800-236-5560
summitcreditunion.com
