This sensible innovation has been debated ever since Tony Abbott first proposed six months of government-funded paid parental leave well over a decade ago.

Opposed at the time by Labor as too generous, he abandoned his plan due to a lack of support within his own party.

The Albanese government, which will have phased in six months of Commonwealth-funded paid parental leave for workers not covered by their employers by 2026, went to the 2019 election promising to pay superannuation on the benefit, which can be accessed by either parent.

It was generally believed that remained Labor policy until two weeks out from the March 21, 2022, election when the then shadow minister for women, Tanya Plibersek, said the party was no longer committed to doing this in its first term in office.

"It's not a policy we're taking to this election; its important we continue to see reform to paid parental leave," she said at the time.

While the six months of PPL, and the super top up, apply equally to fathers and mothers it is well documented the lions share of what was once universally referred to as "maternity leave" is taken by women.

While there are many reasons, both economic and sociological, for this, one driver has been the significant gender pay gap which, on average, sees men earn 21.7 per cent more than women according to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency.

The average family would suffer a much more substantial financial hit if the father took six months' leave given payments under the scheme are capped at $882.75 a week.

The irony is that because, up until now, superannuation has not been topped up as part of the Commonwealth's PPL scheme, the experience for many mothers has been an even bigger shortfall in their retirement savings when compared to a man.

According to the Australia Institute's Centre for Future Work, women will, on average, retire with $136,000 less in superannuation than their male counterparts.

It's little wonder that women over 50 who have experienced a separation - especially later in life - are the fastest-growing cohort of the homeless in this country.

While the PPL superannuation contributions, which unfortunately don't come into effect until July 1 next year, are not a silver bullet that will abolish poverty among older women any time soon, they are definitely a step in the right direction.

The innovation is particularly apposite given, with little fanfare and surprisingly little blowback, the pension age for women was incrementally increased from 60 to 65 between 1995 and 2013 as a result of a decision by the Keating government.

The pension age for both men and women has been 67 since July 2023.

It is only fair, in view of the impact this increase in the length of the wait for the aged pension has had on millions of Australian women, that steps are taken to boost their financial resources by other means.

This measure, which is expected to give each individual who takes the full Commonwealth funded PPL entitlement an extra $3400 at retirement (per child), should be seen as just the beginning.

Much more still needs to be done to ensure that women are just as able to enjoy a suitably funded retirement and old age as men.

The gender pay gap doesn't end at the office or on the shop floor. It has a devastating impact on how women plan their retirement and can force individuals to keep on working, often in menial and low paid jobs, long after they wish to stop.