As of December 2022, women’s involvement is at 13.2% in blue or grey-collar employment.
The blue-collar sector has experienced various shifts in India with low involvement by women in the male-dominated economy. The data compiled by Economic Times reveals that women’s involvement in blue and grey-collar occupations has grown just approximately 1% in the previous six years.
BetterPlace, the workforce management platform gathered a sample size of 102,905 individuals which showed that as of December 2022, women’s involvement in blue and grey-collar occupations is at 13.2%, whereas it was 11.96% in 2017.
Researchers have recommended various measures to boost women’s engagement in blue and grey-collar jobs.
Dr Nandita Krishan, Vice President- OD Consultation & Facilitation, Marching Sheep remarked, “Even though women contribute to over half of our country’s population, nevertheless their involvement in the job market has always remained tough. Women’s involvement in the workforce has been fluctuating between 11% and 13% for some time now. Although post-Covid, the numbers have grown, it is still a topic of worry in businesses including manufacturing, logistics, and transportation.”
“Even though various studies have shown that increasing woman participation in blue-collar jobs by even a minimal 10%, has the potential to add $770 billion to India’s GDP by 2025-26, the participation of women in India’s blue and grey-collar jobs, which means jobs which are mostly manual in nature, has increased by only 1% in the last six years,” Krishan said.
“There are several variables that combine to this minimal rise in women involvement, generating a leaky bucket in these occupations. The need of the hour is proper skill training, flexible work hours, enabling regulations, a safe workplace for women to develop and prosper, and knowledge and sensitization among workers and managers for an inclusive and equal work environment,” she said.
Kiran Dham, Globus Infocom Ltd CEO remarked that if a woman is self-confident and clear about her objectives she can outshine anywhere and in any sector. The same is the situation with blue or grey-collar occupations where women are entering the corporate sector and making a difference in the workplace.
“Even today we see women in the tech- business in diverse professions and at various levels. While the number of women is still not encouraging thus would desire to see more women in this business and create a space for themselves and participate successfully in this arena as well. Be your competition. Learn each day and push yourself each day. For sure it would bring the best out of you,” Dham urged.
Gigchain Founder Trina Das the flexibility and nature of gig labour allow for many women to engage but a lot more awareness is required from businesses like ours. Not only college students and young moms but even grandparents and mothers-in-law are utilising their leisure time for gig labour and they love being able to take up jobs and gain from it.
“We need to encourage more such gig labour and a lot more marketing and awareness initiatives are required to facilitate women’s engagement in this economy,” she said.
