20 Sept 2024
Labour Secretary Sumita Dawra is leading a task force that aims to enhance female workforce participation.
Indian women constitute 48% of the population but contribute only 18% to the GDP. To boost their workforce participation, the Labour Ministry is preparing a framework for a flexible working regime for women.
It plans to offer social security benefits and flexibility within existing working hours, especially to women working in the unorganised sectors and industries with a greater female workforce, like caregivers. It may also propose measures to enhance public transportation to benefit female workers.
The framework will introduce recommendations from state governments and industries, which may not be a statutory mandate.
The task force is holding discussions with several stakeholders and industry experts and may submit a final outlook to the government by the year end.
The female workforce participation is 37% in India compared to over 50% globally. The labour participation for men in India stands at 77.2%, not far behind 80% worldwide.