If you think there are more women in the labor force today than before, think again.
Data from the International Labor Organization or ILO shows there hasn’t been a significant change in women’s participation rate in the last three decades.
This instantly raises curiosity about the percentage of the workforce that is female.
This and other interesting facts about women in the employment sector coming right up.
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What Percentage of the Workforce is Female in 2024?
For those who came here to find the answer: 39.3% of the workforce is female.
There has not been a significant change in the participation rate in 30 years.
Take a look at this data from World Bank extracted from International Labor Organization and United Nations Population Division.
It details the percentage of female participation in the global labor force from 1990 to 2021.
Data from 1990 to 1999:
- 1990 – female workers occupied 39.4% of the global workforce during the year
- 1991 – the female workforce participation rate stayed at 39.4% of the global workforce during the year
- 1992 – female workers occupied 39.5% of the global workforce during the year
- 1993 – participation rate of female workers in the global workforce fell to 39.4% during the year
- 1994 – participation rate of female workers increased to 39.6% of the global workforce during the year
- 1995 – female workers occupied 39.6% of the global workforce during the year
- 1996 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.6% during the year
- 1997 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.6% during the year
- 1998 – female participation in the global workforce climbed to 39.7% during the year
- 1999 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.7% during the year
Data for The New Millennium:
- 2000 – the percentage of women in the workforce hit a record high of 39.8% at the start of the new millennium
- 2001 – female participation in the global workforce declined by 39.7% during the year
- 2002 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.7% during the year
- 2003 – female participation in the global workforce snatched back to 39.8% during the year
- 2004 – female participation in the global workforce fell again to 39.7% during the year
- 2005 – female participation in the global workforce improved again to 39.8% during the year
- 2006 – female participation in the global workforce declined by 39.7% during the year
- 2007 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.7% during the year
- 2008 – female participation in the global workforce recorded its first big fall to 39.5% during the year
- 2009 – the data stayed at 39.5% during the period, settling at its lowest record since the new millennium
There have been significant swings in data during this period.
Female participation in the workforce hit a record high at the beginning of the new millennium, only to end the decade at a record low.
Data from 2010 to 2021:
- 2010 – female participation rate continued to decline at the start of a new decade. The percentage of women in the workforce in 2010 was only 39.4% of the entire labor force
- 2011 – female participation continued to decline the following year. The percentage of women in the workforce was only 39.3% during the year
- 2012 – women participation hit a record low of 39.2% during the year
- 2013 – the data stayed at a record-low rate of 39.2% during the year
- 2014 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.2% during the year
- 2015 – female participation in the global workforce climbed to 39.3% for the first time in three years
- 2016 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.3% during the year
- 2017 – female participation in the global workforce climbed to 39.4% during the year
- 2018 – female participation in the global workforce stayed at 39.4% during the year
- 2019 – the percentage of women in the global workforce improved to 39.5% during the period
- 2020 – the pandemic sent the most vulnerable members of the population to unemployment rot. During the year, female participation in the global workforce declined back to 39.2%
- 2021 – female participation in the global workforce improved slightly to 39.3% during the year
Percentage of Women Outside the Workforce
Some countries observe policies less supportive of women’s participation in the global workforce.
Here is a list of countries with the highest percentage of women outside of the workforce according to International Labor Force data released in 2016.
- Yemen – 94% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Iraq – 89% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Jordan – 87% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Iran – 86% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Afghanistan – 85% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Egypt – 85% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Algeria – 84% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Syria – 84% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
- Palestine – 83% of women do not participate in the country’s labor force
Women Prefer to Work on Paid Jobs
Meanwhile, many women preferred to participate in paid jobs instead of assuming domestic roles.
Below is a list of countries with the highest percentage of women wanting to participate in paid jobs.
- Iceland – 97% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Central African Republic – 95% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Mongolia – 93% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Denmark – 93% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Gabon – 91% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Madagascar – 91% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Italy – 90% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Spain – 90% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Norway – 90% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Myanmar – 89% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
- Thailand – 89% of women in the country prefer to work in paid jobs
Women and Pay Gap, Unskilled Jobs
Despite a significant improvement in women’s labor force involvement is some countries, most female workers are involved in unskilled job positions where they earn significantly less than their male counterparts.
According to another study from ILO, 75% of women assume posts in low-paying service sector jobs.
Moreover, 20% of all jobs in the manufacturing sector are occupied by women, while they make up 5% of all jobs in agriculture.
Even in the world’s biggest economy, the United States, women earn $0.82 for every dollar that men get.
Women need to work 42 days more than men for the same amount of earnings.
Conclusion
Sadly, the data shows that the number of women in the workforce remains below 50%, meaning there remains a significant gender gap in labor force participation between genders globally.
Consequently, women are being paid significantly less than men. It takes more policy structure reforms supportive of the female population to see this change.
