DATA presented to the 13th Australian Institute of Family Studies conference earlier this month, confirmed that only in Switzerland do couples fare better financially post-divorce than in Australia.
Despite that, the impact of separation on household income remains greater for women than men in all countries except Britain, where separation negatively affected the finances of men and women to the same extent.
Researchers from AIFS and the Australian National University compared the financial impacts of relationship breakdown for men and women in Australia, the United States, Britain, Germany, Switzerland and Korea.
AIFS Senior Research Fellow, Dr Lixia Qu, said the reasons for the different financial impacts of separation in different countries are not straightforward and are linked to a combination of factors.
Of all six countries, Australia had the second best outcomes for divorced women, six years after separation. The heaviest financial burden fell on women in the United States, Dr Qu said.
Australian women’s financial viability after separation were linked to high levels of government income support; continuing workforce participation; modest levels of child support received from the other parent; and their tendency to re-partner.
But the research confirmed that Australian women still experienced a sharp decline in their household income following divorce and separation.
One year after separation, women had an equivalised income (adjusted for the number of household members) 21 per cent lower than comparable non-separated women.
The impact on men in Australia was slight, with just a one per cent decline.
