LIFTING THE BURDEN KEEPING INDIAN WOMEN FROM WORK

OMEN'S work participation across the world has been low and its recovery from the postpandemic period has been slow.

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The International Labour Organization's World Employment and Social Outlook Report for 2023 reflects on this persistent gender gap and pegs women's participation in the labour market at 47.4 percent, as compared to men's at 72.3 percent.

Apart from ILO's highlight of global gender differentials, the World Bank's Gender Data portal reveals substantial regional differences too-particularly in South Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, where participation of women in the labour force is even lower than in other regions. In India, the 2022-23 Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) shows that women's work participation (WPR) is 35.9 percent― much lower than the global average.

Although there has been a small worldwide rebound in gender parity in the labour market participation rate since 2022, with more women entering the market than men, the inequalities continue to persist. According to a report by the World Economic Forum in 2023, the informal economy has significantly contributed to this recovery for women, with four out of every five new jobs created in the informal sector. Temporary and part-time work arrangements often make it easier for women to balance care-giving and paid work, one of the reasons women are drawn to the informal sector. However, within the informal sector, women are generally engaged in low-paid employment with extremely limited access to social security and better employment conditions. The growing trend towards greater reliance on technology and digitalisation also requires special attention, especially in the context of women workers in the informal sector.