Canberrans will pocket $20 million in greater retirement savings this year through the rise in the superannuation rate this month, as lower-paid workers in the ACT's private sector emerge as the largest beneficiaries of the increase.
Analysis from Industry Super Australia shows about 85,000 employees in Canberra will benefit from the increase after the rate rose to 10 per cent on July 1, giving the typical 30-year-old worker an additional $19,000 in their superannuation balances by retirement.
Younger and lower-paid workers are set to benefit the most from the rise, with almost a third of the ACT employees getting the increase being in their 20s, and about half earning less than $55,000 a year.
The superannuation rise would put an additional $230 a year into the super accounts of the average worker in the national capital.
Industry Super Australia deputy chief executive Matt Linden said the increase would have larger long-term benefits as that money would grow through compound interest.
It does give workers more options when it comes to their retirement and ultimately when they come to looking at aged care.
Matt Linden
The ACT's private sector workers would benefit most from the super rate rise, compared to public servants, who already had higher levels of super contribution rates, he said.
Among the greatest beneficiaries would be workers in hospitality, retail and construction.
Industry Super said the superannuation guarantee was a critical response to the ageing population, and would improve retirement incomes in a financially sustainable manner.
"With people having higher levels of private savings it does give them more options when it comes to their retirement and ultimately when they come to looking at aged care," Mr Linden said.
"It will be an important source of income for retirees increasingly into the future," he said.
The guarantee rise would also help younger workers restore their superannuation after the government let people draw down their balances in response to the Covid economic downturn last year, Industry Super said.
The superannuation rate is legislated to rise to 12 per cent by 2025 in annual 0.5 per cent increases, which would add $85,000 to a typical worker's retirement savings, according to Industry Super.
