Gender gap in labor force participation rates remains wide across the globe
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) “women remain much less likely to participate in the labor market than men,” with a 26.5% gender gap in global labor force participation rates. In its World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends for Women 2018 research paper, the ILO finds that there are differences in women’s access to employment across countries that are at different developmental stages.
The gender gap in labor force participation is highest in emerging countries, where it continues to widen, whereas the gap is gradually closing in developing and developed countries. Women’s labor force participation in emerging countries in 2018 is 45.6% compared to 52.4% in developed countries and 69.3% in developing countries.
The research suggests that the lack of progress in emerging countries is owing to unequal labor market opportunities for men and women, and because more women are enrolled in formal education resulting in fewer women in the labor force.
In developed countries however, the gender gap in participation rates is gradually closing for several reasons, the research finds. Firstly, women and men increasingly have equal levels of education, secondly, women face less restrictive social norms regarding employment and, thirdly, there are more family support policies such as paid leave and affordable child care, making it easier for women to participate in the labor market.
Anne E. Winkler writes that women’s labor force participation varies substantially across countries owing to differences in “non-economic factors such as cultural norms, and public policies." Winkler also stresses however, that leave policies can hinder women’s labor participation if the leave is too long, as this may discourage women to return to work and can also restrict future opportunities for career progression. As such, public policies should target both men and women in order to reduce the gender gap in labor market participation rates.
Although developing countries have the smallest gender gap in participation rates, at 11.8% in 2018, this reflects the “economic necessity to seek employment, driven by prevailing poverty.” Indeed, Sher Verick comments that high female labor force participation in developing countries “typically reflects poverty,” for example women in Nepal work mainly in subsistence agriculture but this is “driven more by poverty than by choice.”
Current efforts by major actors in the labor market are insufficient, the research finds. The ILO urges societal initiatives to dismantle structural inequalities faced by women, especially regarding household and care responsibilities that prevent women from participating in the labor market. Similarly, Verick urges policymakers to improve “access to childcare, as well as other supportive institutions and legal measures to ease the burden of domestic duties.”
The ILO emphasizes that where challenges to women’s labor force participation persist, economic growth and social development will suffer. Consequently, closing such gender gaps is “one of the most pressing labor market and social challenges facing the global community today.”
Read more about female labor force participation.
For specific expertise on female labor force participation, get in touch directly with Anne E. Winkler or Sher Verick.