WUNRN
ILO - International Labour
Organization
ILO World of Work Report 2014 - Developing with Jobs -
Women
Direct Link to Full 207-Page 2014
ILO Report:
Disparity in quality jobs remains significant …Despite positive trends, employment and social challenges remain acute in most emerging and developing countries. More than half of the developing world's workers (i.e., nearly 1.5 billion people) are in vulnerable employment. These workers are less likely than wage earners to have formal working arrangements, be covered by social protection such as pensions and health care or have regular earnings.They tend to be trapped in a vicious circle of low-productivity occupations, poor remuneration and limited ability to invest in their families’ health and education, which in turn dampens overall development and growth prospects – not only for themselves but for generations to follow. In South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, more than three out of four workers are in vulnerable forms of employment, with women disproportionately affected compared to men.
......The youth unemployment rate
exceeds 12 per cent in developing countries – more than three times the
unemployment rate for adults. Regionally, the highest youth unemployment rates
are found in the Middle East and North Africa regions, where nearly one in
three young people in the labour force are unable to find work. Young women, in particular, are
struggling to find work in these regions, with unemployment rates approaching
45 per cent.
.......The widening of income
inequalities within countries is now a well-established fact. Analysis suggests
that this trend is associated with a change in the distribution of income, to
the detriment of labour.
Page 11 of
Report: Figure 1.10 - UNEMPLOMENT BY AGE & GENDER, WORLD & REGIONS -
2007 & 2014.
Large pools of
economically inactive women represent foregone economic potential. From a more positive
perspective, the large cohort of inactive women also represents a potential
means to accelerate growth
in output and employment, which could help to offset the adverse
effects of demographic shifts and population ageing, which is already affecting
some countries. To
achieve this potential will require a strong policy framework for integrating
women into economies, reducing inhibitive cultural barriers and a general shift
to more positive attitudes regarding the role of women in society in those
regions where they are most excluded........