A Statistical Portrait of the Indian Female Labor Force

Key Points

• In India, the female labor force participation rate is higher in rural areas than in urban areas.
• The distribution of jobs is highly skewed toward agriculture in the rural economy, which drives down wages for women workers.
• Low-earning, unpaid family work and own account work constitute the highest proportion of female employment in rural India, while urban areas have mostly higher-paying regular salaried jobs.
• Informal skill training does not lead to an increase in wages for women workers as compared to formal skill training.
• Very few women workers in India receive any social security benefits.