Educated women workforce grows, but where are the jobs? 

Khushi Sharma, a recent graduate in Hindi language, is determined to pursue post-graduation while simultaneously preparing for police service exams. Despite her ambitions, she faces pressure from her mother, who, having lost her husband, is keen on arranging her daughter’s marriage as soon as possible. Her mother’s reasoning revolves around the argument that there are no job opportunities for educated girls, raising the question — ‘if education doesn’t lead to employment, why bother studying?’ 

Khushi is not the only one grappling with this dilemma. Many girls in her village of Asoha and neighbouring villages in the Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, have had to abandon their education prematurely, due to the discouraging employment prospects for educated females. 

With the improvement in female literacy levels and gross enrollment ratio of females in schools, there is a need to create more jobs for educated women, too. 

According to UNICEF, approximately 43 per cent of girls in India drop out before completing their secondary education for various reasons, including household responsibilities, early marriage, child labour, long distance to schools, and inadequate sanitation facilities. Furthermore, the limited applicability of education for employment and career prospects, contributes to the high dropout rate among girls before they finish secondary education. 

Only for the rich?    

Swapnil Srivastava, associated with an NGO in Gomapur village, asserts that when educated girls in the poor community struggle to secure jobs, it has a cascading impact on the education of other girls. She identifies this as a critical factor influencing girls’ education. 

National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) data reveal that the proportion of women who have completed more than 12 years of schooling is highest in the age bracket of 20 to 24 at 47 per cent, followed by those between 25-29 years at 35.7 per cent. But in the older age groups, fewer numbers have completed over 12 years of schooling. 

The proportion of women with no schooling is also higher in the older age groups of over 35 years. This shows that the number of women getting educated for 12 years or more is increasing. The improvement in gross enrolment ratio of females bears this out. 

Female educational attainment also increases with household wealth. Females in the lowest wealth quintile have completed a median of 0.4 years of schooling, compared to a median of 9.3 years for females in the highest wealth quintile. 

Women employment 

Poverty and unemployment are two major issues here. A few girls in the village are educated and are now sitting at home without jobs. Also, educated girls don’t want to get married immediately and want to work. But where are jobs for women?, ask the women folk in Samadha village, adding that this is true for women in any part of the country.  

The 2022 World Bank gender data for India highlights a significant gender disparity in labour force participation. Among individuals aged 15 and older, only 24 per cent of females are economically active, while 73.6 per cent of males participate in the labour force. 

This data underscores a troubling trend as female labour force participation has consistently declined since 1990. In 2010, the participation rate for women was 28.8 per cent, which decreased to 22.7 per cent in 2020. While there was a slight improvement to 24 per cent in the most recent year, it’s worth noting that female labour force participation in India has not surpassed 30 per cent since 1990. 

What is particularly concerning is the widening gender gap in labour force participation when compared to the lower-middle-income group. In India, this gap between men and women is more pronounced. 

More men have jobs

The NFHS-5 data reveal that men are three times more likely to be currently employed as women; 25 per cent of women in the 15-49 age group are currently employed, compared to 75 per cent of men in the same age group. Since 2015-16, current employment levels have marginally increased for women. Twenty four per cent of women were currently employed in 2015-16, compared to 25 per cent in 2019-21. 

These numbers underscore the need for the government to float schemes to providing jobs for women, especially in the lower income bracket. 

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