Gender Dimensions of Employment in India

8/2/2019 Gender Dimensions of Employment in India

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Gender Dimensions of

Employment in India

Neetha N.

Centre for Womens Development Studies

New Delhi, INDIA

The views expressed in this paper are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy ofthe data included in this paper and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper donot imply any view on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform to ADB's terminology.


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Overview

Jobless growth- Unimpressive growth rate in employmentwith considerable fluctuations.

During the period 1988 to 1994, annual rural aggregateemployment grew at 2.03 percent, but in the subsequentperiod the rate slipped sharply to 0.66 percent while theurban employment growth rate declined from 3.39 per centto 2.27 per cent.

The annual rate of employment growth, however, did showrecovery between 2000 and 2005, increasing to 1.97 per centand 3.22 per cent for the rural and urban sectors respectively further declined drastically in the recent years- 0.17% perannum between 2004-05 and 2007-08 .

The subject of women, work and globalization has been animportant area of debate and analysis in India.


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Recent data indicates a crisis in female

employment.

Three broad aspects

Extent of the decline both total and paid

employment

Sectoral and industrial dimensions of the decline

Implications and future policy


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Trends in Female Work Participation Rates

(UPS and UPSS)


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Percentage Distribution of Employment by Status-

UPSS- Rural


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Percentage Distribution of Employment by Status-

UPSS- Urban


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Characteristics of Rural Self-employed Women Workers

(UPSS)


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Characteristics of Urban Self-employed Women Workers

(UPSS)


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Percentage Distribution of Rural Female Workforce by

Employment Status (UPSS)


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Percentage Distribution of Urban Female Workforce by

Employment Status (UPSS)


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Usual (PS+SS) Paid Work Participation Rates


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Usual (PS+SS) Work Participation Rates

( )


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Estimated numbers of UPSS workers (rural + urban) across broad industrial categories,

1993-94 to 2009-10 [000s]

Industry Female and Male Workers1993-94 1999-00 2004-05 2007-08 2009-10

Agriculture F

M

94,188 (77.4)

1,44,638 (57.3)

92,365 (75.1)

1,45,619 (53.1)

1,07,772 (72.5)

1,51,107 (48.9)

99,681 (73.7)

1,63,141 (50.2)

87,566 (68.7)

1,56,224 (47.1)

Mining and Quarrying FM

480 (0.4) 361 (0.3) 409 (0.3) 400 (0.3) 382 (0.3)2,232 (0.9) 1,869 (0.7) 2,229 (0.7) 2,058 (0.6) 2,653 (0.8)

Manufacturing F

M

11,524 (9.5) 12,376 (10.7) 17,313 (11.7) 13,970 (10.3) 13,766 (10.8)28,336 (11.2) 31,583 (11.5) 38,629 (12.5) 38,852 (12.0) 36,817 (11.1)

Electricity , water etc F

M

86 (0.1) 45 (0) 62 (0) 39(0) 127 (0.1)1,331 (0.5) 1,056 (0.4) 1,240 (0.4) 1,145 (0.4) 995 (0.3)

Construction F

M

1,598 (1.3) 1,969 (1.6) 2,728 (1.8) 3,144 (2.3) 6,501 (5.1)10,378 (4.1) 15,475 (5.6) 23,305 (7.5) 26,611 (8.2) 37,481 (11.3)

Trade, hotels & rest. F

M

3,893 (3.2) 5,215 (4.2) 6,101 (4.1) 5,209 (3.9) 5,481 (4.3)24,610 (9.8) 35,924 (13.1) 43,433 (14.0) 42,307 (13.0) 44,446 (13.4)

Trans. and comm. F

M

280 (0.2) 436 (0.4) 528 (0.4) 544 (0.4) 510 (0.4)10,446 (4.1) 14,241 (5.2) 17,950 (5.8) 19,146 (5.9) 19,569 (5.9)

Other services F

M

9,664 (7.9) 10,292 (8.4) 13,677 (9.2) 12,301 (9.1) 13,129 (10.3)30,380 (12.0) 28,220 (10.3) 31,418 (10.2) 3,1682 (9.8) 33,500 (10.1)

All Workers FM

1,21,713 1,23,038 1,48,589 1,35,288 1,27,4622,52,350 2,73,980 3,09,310 3,24,942 3,31,686


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Sectoral Distribution and Trends

Widening the gap between the number of male and female workers bothpaid workforce as well as in the standard estimate.

While the number of male workers in agriculture has been increasing, thefemale workforce reduced by around 20 million between 2004-05 and2009-10.

Manufacturing the second largest employer -despite having pushed out

around 3.5 million women.

Construction - absorbed maximum drop outs- 3 million additions.

Temporary and partial employment in construction with the prominence of

contractor-based circular migration regime

The number of women working in trade, hotels and restaurants fell by 10%.

Transport, storage and communications and, surprisingly, other servicessaw a reduction in the number of women, although to a lesser degree.


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A comparison of the figures for only paid workers and standard estimates

of the workforce gives some insight into changes in different sectors.

Decline in unpaid work in agriculture and manufacturing.

The declining income from agriculture and shift to non farm wage work ofmale workers - possible explanations for the decline in womensemployment in agriculture.

The fallout of the 2007-08 global financial crisis and the closing down ofmany traditional household industries - loss of unpaid work opportunitiesin manufacturing

This could also be on account contraction in subcontracting part-processesto home-based workers


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Decline in the number of women reflected in womens paid

employment as well.

While the overall decline largely centred on agriculture andmanufacturing- the distribution of paid workers show aslightly different picture.

Decrease in the number of paid women workers is not large, but apartfrom agriculture and construction, every other major industry showreduction in the absolute numbers of paid women workers.

On the whole, a grim picture ofwomens employment at the

turn of the first decade of the 21st

Century


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Female share in paid employment broad sectors


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Importance of service sector as the engine of growth - the mosthighlighted aspect

About 7 per cent of total female employment in rural areas and 51 percent in urban areas in 2009-10.

Stagnating share of service sector, in the context of its projected potentialin terms of female employment, raises serious concerns.

Growth within the service sector and its employment prospects are notuniform, or its implications on different categories of workers.

32 per cent in community social and personal services.

Financial and business services accounting for 1.36 percent of womenworkers 0.26 in rural areas and 5.5 per cent in urban areas.

Slow but steady increase from 2.4 % in 1999-00 to 3.3 % in 2004-05 to 5.5% in 2009-10


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Rural Urban


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Service sector though contributes for substantial proportion of womenworkers, the degree of concentration points to the broad contours ofchange

The sub-sectoral data shows a stagnating share of public administration.

Education occupies the most important position both in rural and urbanareas

Nature of jobs is an issue largely contractual.

Growing share of women in education could be linked to individual andfamily aspirations resulting from the social acceptability of the sector.

Private household with employed persons, next to education indicativeof desperate entry of women into paid work.

Working conditions of domestic workers (in terms of wage earnings andother benefits) are one of poorest


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To sum up

Overall volatility and marginalization of women - Decline in WPR andsectoral concentration.

Womens work still dependent on male employment. Male employmentshifts from self employment to casual labour or regular work leads towomen losing as unpaid helpers.

Need to look at paid work and its changes. - a large section still remainingout of paid employment and their share is increasing.

This alters the nature of cooperation or interdependence and powerrelations in families or households.

The scale of such economic and financial dependence is perhaps the mostsignificant factor in the continuing subordinate status of women


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Suggestions for Policy

Generation of jobs at the middle level alongside opportunities of skilldevelopment better presence in upper and lower ends.

Creation of conducive environment with enabling conditions enhancevisibility as well as participation in productive employment.

Special focus on sectors of higher concentration regulations required fordomestic workers ,women in education sector and own account workers.

Supportive social institutions that lessen womens care and domesticresponsibilities enabling their entry and competitiveness in the labour

market.

Gender Dimensions of Employment in India

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