When it comes to retirement readiness, women lag far behind men. This makes them especially vulnerable if they plan to rely on a spouse's 401(k) plan to help them shore up their own retirement security. For example, the current law provides a woman very little protection if her spouse takes a 401(k) distribution without her consent.
Some lawmakers are trying to change that by reintroducing the Women’s Retirement Protection Act of 2025 (WRPA). While the chances of its passage currently are not high, the WRPA would establish new guarantees to ensure women have fair access to retirement plans their husbands may have been able to invest in while they cared for the family.
