Superannuation funds are agitating for lower retirement age thresholds for Indigenous Australians, warning lower life expectancy means they’re not getting fair access to the pension and super.

Major fund AustralianSuper, consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees and the Australian Council of Trade Unions all raised concerns about Indigenous access to funds in retirement as part of submissions to a government review Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population born between 2015 and 2017 the life expectancy for men was 71.6 years and for women was 75.6 years.

Non-Indigenous men and women have a life expectancy of 80.2 years and 83.4 years respectively. In the past decade there has been a small narrowing in this life expectancy gap. The federal government has committed $4.1 billion for Indigenous health initiatives for four years from 2019-20.

The preservation age, which is when someone can access their super, is currently between 55 and 60 depending on date of birth. The pension age is 66 for those born from 1954 to June 1955, rising to 67 years for those born after 1957. “[The] Indigenous population is more likely not to reach preservation age, so question whether the system is fit for purpose for this cohort,” AustralianSuper said.

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