{"id":6804,"date":"2022-07-16T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-16T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/current_affairs\/uncategorized\/16-07-2022\/female-labour-force-participation\/"},"modified":"2023-12-20T12:32:40","modified_gmt":"2023-12-20T07:02:40","slug":"female-labour-force-participation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/16-07-2022\/female-labour-force-participation","title":{"rendered":"Female Labour Force Participation"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>In News<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Recently, the Vice President of India expressed <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>concern over low female participation in the formal labour force<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> in India.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Key Points about Female Labour Force Participation<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">It is a <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>driver of growth<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> and therefore, participation rates indicate the potential for a country to grow more rapidly.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>relationship <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">between <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>women\u2019s engagement<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> in the labour market and broader<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> development outcomes<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> is <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>complex<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Status in Developing Countries:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The participation of women in the labour force varies considerably across developing countries and emerging economies, far more than in the case of men.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">In the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia, <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>less than one-third<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> of women of working age participate, while the proportion reaches around <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>two-thirds<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> in East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">This variation is driven by a wide variety of<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> economic and social factors <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">including economic growth, increasing educational attainment, falling fertility rates and social norms.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Besides the labour market <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>gender gap<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">s are more pronounced in developing countries, and the <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>disparity<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> is highest in South Asian countries.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/aPJmCA2vcqGH7H1q1AmfTdNcXgciPXQ4G7XMgmebYkjftwNJyM34KpzVxWV8j8WXEzK6b1SACrwBJ4OCT7h2H3gD8c2o0lvoe04c6qFYYYz02He3HjeFFOt70Sp1bvr66J9tjho5Xi6UlMyoswk\" style=\"height:313.0; width:470.0\" \/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">Image Courtesy: <\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/qph.cf2.quoracdn.net\/main-qimg-ac4f733396b859f48e23a54e8303f678.webp\" style=\"text-decoration-line:none\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><span style=\"color:#1155cc\">Quora<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Report, <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">there is surge in Female Labour Force Participation Rate:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">It can be interpreted as a positive sign but there is a catch.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Much of this increase is in the most sub-optimal category of unpaid family workers.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh4.googleusercontent.com\/7gfjxU2SiNG73LNuFG7TqpZDJ8Q5H8oW3vur_7xG7cL8EVQA9umY2MfqANwpY1IY0VPXTCbIMS1S-5HHGEYA3rkA5kD4gUtpQE0v8V8Lv-OTWxyJgGTPe5GK84i2nBLumPeDqJsFPah8YSqBePE\" style=\"height:862.0; width:602.0\" \/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">Image Courtesy: <\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/images.livemint.com\/img\/2022\/03\/07\/original\/long_story_grfx1_1646677532959.jpg\" style=\"text-decoration-line:none\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><span style=\"color:#1155cc\">LM<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Impact of COVID 19 on Women in India<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>post-pandemic situation<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> continues to be problematic:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Disproportionate <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>job losses<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> faced by women,\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The spike in<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> dropout rates <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">of girls further exacerbated by gender gaps in access to digital tools,\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The rise in cases of <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>domestic abuse<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> during the lockdown,\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The disruption to reproductive and Maternal health services faced due to closure of Anganwadi centres.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Some <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>worrying trends<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> are:\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">India\u2019s falling female labour force participation rate (LFPR), and\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:circle\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">India <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>ranks 135 <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">among a total of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum\u2019s <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Global Gender Gap Index 2022<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">, which slipped from 112th position in 2020.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div>\n<table cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"border-collapse:collapse; border:none; table-layout:fixed; width:624px\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"background-color:#ffe599; border-bottom:1px solid #000000; border-left:1px solid #000000; border-right:1px solid #000000; border-top:1px solid #000000; vertical-align:top\">\n<p><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR)<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The LFPR essentially is the percentage of the working-age (15 years or older) population that is asking for a job.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">It represents the demand for jobs in an economy.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">It includes those who are employed and those who are unemployed.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The Unemployment Rate (UER) is the number of unemployed (category 2) as a proportion of the labour force.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Significance<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Contribution to GDP: <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Increasing the participation of women in the formal labour force will significantly increase their contribution to the GDP as also for inclusive growth.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Changing narratives: <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Women empowerment is important in a developing country like India, this is necessary to change established gender narratives and ensure upward mobility of women in various fields.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Challenges in Female Labour Force Participation<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Linkages: <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Educational institutions to form linkages with the industries and tailor the courses in accordance with their requirements.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Zero tolerance towards gender discrimination:<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> There is a need to bring about a change in the mindset of the people. This transformation should begin at home where boys and girls are treated equally.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">For <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>effective implementation of National Education Policy-2020, <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">it is necessary to ensure equitable education and transform the educational landscape in the country. NEP<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">has set the goal to achieve 100 percent enrolment of girls in schools by 2035 and 50 per cent in higher education institutions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Growing Working Age Population and Shrinking Jobs:<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> While India\u2019s working-age population has been increasing each year, the percentage of people with jobs has been coming down sharply.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB): <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Increasing the size of the gender budget, making women-focussed expenditure more targeted and enhancing GRB efforts at the State level.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh3.googleusercontent.com\/eMG8Y4d-v4FCJByFZcueI2c0edXyNRlDqcQBLy3MJCHmEp6rHB2J4f99AjlEi7y6OEW_xYJhK-ISVymp15lg4HGSmQ8lvf-gzHAgABFCfNd0FX8eHNqp4VZDAIqaiCw7vsSb0g9QGeUFrKPWNiw\" style=\"height:286.0; width:469.0\" \/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">Image Courtesy: <\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/img.etimg.com\/photo\/msid-90061359,quality-100\/job.jpg\" style=\"text-decoration-line:none\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><span style=\"color:#1155cc\">ET<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:justify\"><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">No nation can progress without the <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>educational empowerment of women<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">, so educational institutions should introduce skill-based courses for<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> increasing the employability<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> of women.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">There is a need to<\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong> change established gender narratives<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> and ensure the <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>upward mobility of women <\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">in various fields.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">The focus must be on <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>character building and integrity<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"> through value-based education.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type:disc\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">Care and share are at the core of Indian philosophy, and it is extremely important to inculcate the values of <\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><strong>empathy and sensitivity among students<\/strong><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-size:13pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><strong>Source<\/strong><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\">: <\/span><\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1841855\" style=\"text-decoration-line:none\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-size:12pt\"><span style=\"font-family:\"Book Antiqua\",serif\"><span style=\"color:#1155cc\">PIB<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In News Recently, the Vice President of India expressed concern over low female participation in the formal labour force in India. Key Points about Female Labour Force Participation It is a driver of growth and therefore, participation rates indicate the potential for a country to grow more rapidly.\u00a0 The relationship between women\u2019s engagement in the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[26,46],"class_list":["post-6804","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs","tag-gs-3","tag-indian-economy-related-issues"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6804"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19814,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6804\/revisions\/19814"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6804"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6804"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6804"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}