A greater proportion of female workers compared to male workers in urban India are employed in manufacturing (23.9 per cent) and other services (40.1 per cent), according to the latest “Women and Men in India, 2023” report.
In contrast, the annual report released on Monday showed that a major proportion of urban male workers are engaged in construction (12.6 per cent), trade, hotel & restaurants (26.5 per cent), and transport, storage & communications (13.2 per cent) sectors.
“Surprisingly, a greater proportion of urban females are engaged in manufacturing than urban males,” the report said, without providing an explanation.
In rural India, women continue to dominate the agriculture sector (76.2 per cent) compared to rural men (49.1 per cent), who are engaged in the primary sector. The report has relied on the annual Periodic Labour Force Surveys (PLFS) for the data.
The report highlighted that despite progress, women still encounter numerous barriers when entering the labour market and seeking access to quality employment. “The substantial disparity between male and female representation in the workforce can be mitigated through strategic measures such as the implementation of improved incentive mechanisms, targeted training programmes, job reservations, and the establishment of safe workplace environments. These steps aim to create a more equitable and supportive framework that fosters increased participation of women in the workforce while addressing the specific challenges they confront,” it added.
The average wage of women is lower than that of men, and the disparity is greater in urban than in rural areas and across occupations, the report said. Quoting the PLFS survey for the April-June quarter of 2023 for casual labourers, the report showed that the average wage for rural male workers (Rs 416) was higher than for rural female workers (Rs 287). Similarly, urban male casual workers (Rs 515) earn far more than urban female casual workers (Rs 333) during the quarter.
In terms of broad employment status, though a higher proportion of women (71 per cent) than men (58.8 per cent) are self-employed, 43.1 per cent of rural women were helpers in household enterprises compared to just 11 per cent for males. In urban areas, 50.8 per cent of female workers were in regular wage/salary employment compared to 47.1 per cent of male workers.
In rural areas, the female unemployment rate (1.8 per cent) has been lower than that of males (2.8 per cent) over the years, while in urban areas, the scenario is the other way round, with higher female unemployment (7.5 per cent) than male unemployment (4.7 per cent). “One key reason behind such data may be that fewer females seek work in rural areas, and there are more opportunities for work in agricultural and other informal sectors in rural areas. Further, such opportunities may not be available for women in urban areas. It needs to be highlighted that the unemployment rate is the highest for urban females in the 15-29 years’ age group, followed by urban males in that age group,” the report said.
First Published: Aug 12 2024 | 8:59 PM IST
