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Fact Of The Day #80: Gender Inequality In Social Security Benefits (INFOGRAPHIC)

Gender Inequality In Workplace Follows Women Into Retirement
FILE - This Feb. 2005 file photo shows trays of printed social security checks, in Philadelphia, waiting to be mailed from the U.S. Treasury. More than 56 million Social Security recipients will see their monthly payments go up by 1.7 percent next year. The increase, which starts in January, is tied to a measure of inflation released Tuesday. It shows that inflation has been relatively low over the past year _ despite the recent surge in gas prices _ resulting in one of the smallest increases in Social Security payments since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975. (AP Photo/Bradley C. Bower, File)
FILE - This Feb. 2005 file photo shows trays of printed social security checks, in Philadelphia, waiting to be mailed from the U.S. Treasury. More than 56 million Social Security recipients will see their monthly payments go up by 1.7 percent next year. The increase, which starts in January, is tied to a measure of inflation released Tuesday. It shows that inflation has been relatively low over the past year _ despite the recent surge in gas prices _ resulting in one of the smallest increases in Social Security payments since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975. (AP Photo/Bradley C. Bower, File)

The average female retiree on Social Security gets a monthly benefit $300 smaller than the average male retiree. Because retirement benefits are tied to average lifetime earnings, and women have tended to earn less than men, the average monthly Social Security retirement benefit is $1,023 for women, $1,323 for men. The difference -- $300 - is about what the average American household spends on groceries per month.

Women accounted for 56 percent of Social Security beneficiaries in 2010.

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