“Unlocking India’s Growth Potential through Women’s Workforce Participation”
Context
- Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the need for stronger policies and legal frameworks to enhance Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR).
- Improving women’s participation in the workforce is essential for inclusive growth, poverty reduction, and sustainable development.
What is FLFPR?
- Definition: Share of women aged 15+ who are employed or seeking work.
- India (2024 – World Bank): ~33%
- Global Average: ~49%
- Lower Middle-Income Countries: ~41%
Significance:
- Drives income growth and economic productivity.
- Improves health and education outcomes for families.
- Crucial for broad-based development.
Drivers of Female LFPR
- Socio-cultural norms – Social attitudes towards women’s work.
- Supply-side factors – Women’s willingness and ability to participate.
- Demand-side factors – Availability of suitable jobs.
Why FLFPR is Low in India?
- Unpaid Care Work
- Women spend 8 times more time than men on household & caregiving.
- Global average (UN): Women spend 3 times more than men.
- Unequal Wages
- India’s rank (WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2024): 120th / 146 countries.
- Significant wage inequality discourages participation.
- Socio-cultural Restrictions
- Patriarchal norms and safety concerns limit women’s work choices.
- Weak Labour Demand
- Capital-intensive growth path → fewer jobs in labour-intensive sectors where women could work.
- Poor Education Outcomes (ASER Report)
- Reading: 23% (Grade 3), 44% (Grade 5).
- Arithmetic: 33% (Grade 3), 30% (Grade 5).
- Regional Gaps: States like Rajasthan, UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, MP struggle with quality education.
- Low Skills Training
- Only 4.7% of workforce formally trained.
- Comparisons: Germany – 75%, South Korea – 96%.
- Restrictive Labour Laws
- 15% of Indian firms cite labour laws as a major/severe constraint.
- Comparisons: Bangladesh – 3.4%, Philippines – 6.4%.
Peer Countries with Higher FLFPR
- Bangladesh & Philippines outperform India.
- 1990 Comparison:
- India: 30%
- Bangladesh: 25%
- ➝ Now Bangladesh surged ahead.
Reasons:
- Employment intensity
- Labour-intensity of economy
- Level of development (similar across peers; differences arise mainly from 1 & 2).
Case Study: Bangladesh
- Garment Industry (RMG)
- RMG exports: 4% of total exports (1983) → 81% (2021), $42 billion.
- Over 60% of workers are female.
- Impact
- Without RMG boom, Bangladesh’s FLFPR would be only ~38%.
- Key Lessons
- Demand-side job creation matters as much as norms & skills.
- Labour-intensive exports enabled women’s mass entry into the workforce.
Conclusion
- India’s FLFPR remains low due to unpaid care burden, wage inequality, poor education/skills, restrictive labour laws, and weak labour demand.
- Learning from peers like Bangladesh, India must:
- Improve education quality & vocational training.
- Reform labour laws to enable job creation.
- Promote employment-intensive growth in sectors like textiles, services, health, and manufacturing.
Source : Business Standard
