Gender dynamics in employment and labour force trends in South Africa.

Abstract

Culture, tradition, norms and stereotypes have always contributed to the gender division of labour. Women often assume much more of the household and care responsibilities which inhibit their ability and opportunity to participate in the labour market. The fact is that career and family decisions coincide in terms of timing call for systems which would allow a concordant time investment in both market work and nonmarket activities. The aim of this paper is to provide facts through a gender-based comparative analysis of the information on labour force, employment, and unemployment trends in South Africa, covering the period from 2010 to 2016. The paper analyses secondary data collected from the South African Quarterly Labour Force Survey covering the period from 2010 to 2016. The analysis of data is descriptive in nature. The results revealed that women were more likely than men to be unemployed or underemployed. Women’s share of the total informal workforce is higher than men’s share and they (women) are more likely to do unpaid household than men. The gender gap in employment, occupation and sector translates into limited access to employment-related social protection among females. Efforts need to be made in enabling environment towards women’s economic empowerment, through the expansion and improvement of the infrastructure for care services.