India’s budget needs to address gender inequity in employment

Context: The pandemic has not been a great leveller and has hit some sections harder than others, exposing pre-existing fault-lines. One of these inequalities is the gender gap in paid and unpaid work.

 Gender gap in paid and unpaid work:

• COVID-19 effect:
  • Male employment in August was 98%, and female employment was 91% (as per Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data).
  • The pandemic-led recession has led to a fall in urban employment rates of females, which were already lower than rural. Younger women (early 20s) have been particularly hurt.
  • While men increased hours spent on housework in this extraordinary situation, these green shoots of gender equality did not get further enhanced in August.
• Gender difference in unpaid work: In India, women spend up to 10 times more time on housework compared to men.
• Declining female Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): Despite the presence of falling fertility and rapidly rising female education levels.
• Unmet demand for paid work: Women want to work, but are hampered by a combination of factors.
  • They need work commensurate with their rising educational qualifications.
  • They need conducive conditions (transportation, toilets, regularity).
  • They have to balance the pressures of domestic chores.

 Way Forward:

• Commit resources to cushion falling incomes (by providing cash or kind) and increase consumption demand.
• Take special measures to boost demand for women’s work and concerted support to women’s self-employment and livelihood-generating activities.
• Ensuring employment opportunities for both urban and rural women; Women with high levels of education need jobs commensurate with their qualifications.

 Conclusion: India can’t aspire to be a global superpower with gender inequalities that are worsening over time. The government need to allocate more resources through the budget for ensuring gender equality.