Women's Employment Sees 10% Rise, But Millions Still Excluded
Despite a notable 10 per cent increase in employment opportunities for urban women in India over the past six years, more than 89 million women remained outside the labour force in 2023-2024, according to a recent report titled 'India's Gender Employment Paradox', released by the Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai.
Launched on International Women's Day, the report provides an in-depth examination of the shifting employment dynamics and persisting gender inequalities within urban India, highlighting critical issues such as underutilisation of educated women and potential societal backlash against workplace diversity.
Educated Women's Potential Remains Underutilised
The report underscores a stark reality: over 19 million urban women with graduate-level education are currently excluded from India's economic landscape. This exclusion, driven by personal choices and restrictive social norms, signifies a substantial waste of educational investment.
Key factors preventing these highly qualified women from fully engaging in the workforce include caregiving responsibilities, a lack of flexible working arrangements, and significant commuting challenges. Concurrently, the report pointed out an emerging trend where young urban male unemployment (ages 20-24 years) surpasses female unemployment, at 10 per cent compared to 7.5 per cent.
Persistent Gender Pay Gap Even Among Educated Couples
The findings highlight persistent gender disparities, notably in dual-income, highly educated households. Approximately 62 per cent of such households reported husbands earning higher incomes than their equally qualified wives, demonstrating entrenched gender biases even among educated families.
Suresh Ramanathan, Dean at Great Lakes Institute of Management, emphasised the potential risk associated with inadequate job creation: "It creates a risk of diversity backlash if quality job creation doesn't accelerate to accommodate both genders."
According to Ramanathan, sluggish employment growth may lead to societal resistance towards workplace diversity, particularly as rising female employment coincides with increasing male joblessness, challenging existing social expectations that men must be primary earners.
Employment Linked to Higher Risk of Spousal Violence for Women
In a deeply troubling revelation, the report indicates that employed urban women in India face higher risks of spousal violence compared to non-working women. Notably, employed women are also more likely to justify such abuse (32 per cent compared to 23.5 per cent), suggesting the internalisation of societal pressures and guilt.
Ramanathan calls this paradox particularly alarming, highlighting an urgent need for comprehensive strategies that target gender norms at both domestic and professional levels.
Household Responsibilities Still Disproportionately Impact Women
The report further sheds light on domestic inequities, revealing that wives bear the primary responsibility for household chores in 41 per cent of homes, a sharp contrast to the mere 2 per cent of households where husbands shoulder the primary domestic responsibilities.
Urban mothers accessing remote work face additional pressures, with 86 per cent reporting they spend up to three hours of their working day on childcare duties. Alarmingly, only 44 per cent feel adequately supported by their workplaces, underscoring the imperative for robust policies tailored to support working mothers.