Women’s Employment in Informal Sector: A Compulsion or an Opportunity ?

1. Women’s Employment in Informal Sector: A Compulsion or an Opportunity? By Dr. Duru Arun Kumar SundeepNarang TashaChandolia NetajiSubhas Institute of Technology (Delhi University)

2. Introduction • Women’s employment in non-agricultural and urban informal sector continues to grow in all regions in the world, particularly in developing economies of East and South East Asia. • According to some scholars, the magnitude of women’s employment in the informal sector is much larger than official statistics show, because women’s invisible paid work is often not counted in official statistics.

3. Definition • According to the 17th International Conference of Labor Statisticians (ICLS) 2003, informal employment refers to all employment jobs whether carried out in formal sector enterprises, informal sector enterprises or households. • It is also called “vulnerable” employment because unlike most employees, they are subject to a high level of job insecurity and do not have safety nets to cover them during periods when they are out of work. • Informal wage-employment includes: employees of informal enterprises, casual or day labourers, temporary or part-time workers, paid domestic workers, unregistered or undeclared workers, and industrial out workers (home workers).

4. Women in Informal Sector Employment of Women in Informal Sector on a Global Scale Fig 1

5. Types of Women Workers for the 61st and 64th NSSO Rounds Source : NSSO survey for 61st round. Source : NSSO survey for 64th round.

6. Women’s Employment in Informal Sector in India. Source : NSSO survey for 61st and 64th rounds.

7. Reasons for the Over Representation of Women in the Informal Sector • Some observers argue that women are less able than men to compete in labour, capital and product markets because they have relatively low levels of education and skills. • Others point out that women’s time and mobility are constrained by social and cultural norms that assign the responsibility for social production on women and discourage women’s education and training. • Some studies have found that in the low cost sub-contracted work, employers often, rightly or wrongly, favour employment relations associated with women and the insecure contracts and low wages and low benefits that go with such employment. • Many poor people migrate from rural to urban areas in search of jobs and the need for survival forces them to take up work in the informal sector.

8. Impact of Employment on Women’s Lives • Some scholars have advocated that independent earning opportunities reduce the economic dependence of women on men and increase their bargaining power in the family. • Others believe that income generation alone will not lead to women’s economic empowerment. They also need to be organized to improve their bargaining power both at home and at work. • Besides suboptimal working conditions, low earnings and job insecurities, there are other socio-economic factors which create a “no escape” situation for women in unskilled jobs.

9. The Present Study • In this study we propose to understand the living conditions and familial relations of women employed in the informal sector using the case study method. • Five women were interviewed in detail; three who work as domestic helps and two who are cleaners through a sub-contractor in a government institution. • (This is a part of an ongoing research work)

10. Case Study 1 Anita is a 35 year old illiterate woman and works as a domestic help since the last five years. She earns about Rs.3500 per month. She lives with her husband and two sons (aged 18 and 15) in a one room rented accommodation. She came to Delhi five years ago from a village near Bulandshahar. Maya remembers her life in the village as very peaceful and calm. They had no water shortage there. They owned a house and some farmland but the village had no electricity. Her sons went to a local school. Though they did not starve, they had no cash in the village. So her husband got a job as a peon in a school in Delhi and the family shifted to the city. It was impossible to make ends meet in the city with just one slalary. She had to work, and the only work she could do was as a domestic help in the neighboring residential area, where she still works. Her sons and husband work as cleaners as part of contracted labor in a government institution and hospital. They collectively earn about Rs.12000 – 13000 per month, provided they retain their jobs and do not miss any days of work. They have changed jobs several times for many reasons. If they miss work for a few days because of illness, they are sacked. Sometimes they get into arguments or fights for refusing to do tasks which are not part of their job and they walk away from their work. Their contribution to household expenses also varies as the sons often spend a lot of money on buying trendy clothes, new mobile phones and other electronic gadgets, and eating out. Anita is the only one in her family who has a stable income for the last five years. Her income is used to pay the house rent--Rs 2300 per month--and buy groceries. Other expenses are supplemented by her sons and husband as and when needed. She has to account to her husband for every rupee she spends of her own money. She never has any money to spend on herself. She works long hours and does her own housework too. They get municipal water supply only at 2 a.m. She has to fill the water, which also makes her sleep deprived.

11. Case Study 2 Nazma, around 32 years old and illiterate, has been living in a village in Gurgaon for the past 6 years. Originally from Nandi, West Bengal, her family shifted to the city since they had neither any property nor any land to cultivate. They lived in perpetual poverty. There are 5 other members in family:her husband, who works as a rickshaw puller and scrap dealer; two sons and two daughters. The family income is around Rs. 9,500 in all. Her husband does not drink and contributes his share to the household expenses. They own a television and a mobile phone. Since her mother tongue is Bengali, she could not understand Hindi properly. On being asked whether she wishes to have a better life, she seemed confused at the question but said that she likes the city and is content. However after working all day she has no time for herself. All her time is spent in trying to make ends meet and look after her family and children.

12. Case Study 3 Geeta, aged 30, and her husband work as a cleaners in an institution. Married at an early age of 11 years, Meera is illiterate. But she can read numbers and sign her name. Her husband has studied till the 8th grade. Originally from Alwar, Rajasthan, her parents migrated to Delhi and she was born here. Geeta and her husband are paid Rs. 4500 each through a contractor, who extracts his commission before he pays them. She has two children,15 year old son and a 13 year old daughter, and wants them both to be educated and get a Government job. Sometimes she is asked to work in the institution's senior employee’s home as a domestic help without any extra pay. If she refuses, the contractor threatens to sack her and cuts money from her monthly salary. However, she says that she is content with her job and does not plan to change her profession, since her house is very close to her workplace. Her income is absolutely essential to meet their basic living expenses in the city. Her job and household work leave no time for her to pursue any other interests.

13. Case Study 4 Ramdevi, 50 years old and illiterate, lives with her only son who is 23 years old. She has been living in Delhi for the past 7 years after the demise of her husband. Earlier, they lived in a village near Mathura, in Uttar Pradesh. She works in an institution as a cleaner and earns Rs. 4000 per month. Her son works as a driver and earns Rs. 8000 a month. Though illiterate, she can sign her name. As a child, she used to help her father in his work on their small farm, while her mother was a housewife. She fondly remembers her younger days in the village where she looked after their cattle and crops. She loved knitting and made many sweaters for her family. Being the eldest among 5 brothers and 4 sisters, she was married off at a very young age. Her husband was a farmer but he did not contribute to the family income. Due to lack of medical facilities in the village, her first son died wihtin a week of his birth due to tetanus infection. The second son was born after six years. After her husband died of an unknown disease and excessive drinking, her in-laws ill-treated her and disowned her. She was brought to Delhi by her sister and brother-in-law to work as contracted labor in the institution, where he is a permanent employee. She manages her expenses herself while her son does not contribute to the household expenses. He spends his money on mobiles, television etc. She pays Rs.1000 for a rented room with a shared bathroom. Her house lacks potable water supply, so she carries water from her workplace. She says she is very content with her life in Delhi. Since there are no binding community norms to abide by, she enjoys greater personal freedom. But she is not dependent on her son’s income. She is resigned to this kind of life. She believes she has to work to look after herself but does not know what will happen in her old age.

14. Case Study 5 Sribalais about 40 years old and lives in a rented accommodation with her husband and two sons, 21 and 16 year of age. She belongs to Tamil Nadu. Her parents moved to Delhi many years ago in search of a job. Her father was in government service and she and her other siblings were well looked after by their parents. She dropped out of school early and can barely read or write. She has been doing domestic work for 25 years to supplement her family income. Her husband is a tailor. But he is an alcoholic and has a foul nature. He cannot hold a job and is frequently sacked. Sribala’sincome is the only steady income. She has single handedly educatedher sons. One is a tenth class dropout and another is in 12th grade. The older son has worked in many temporary jobs but is unable to stick around in one for more than three or four months. Sribala’rnsabout five thousand a month. She has to pay rent of Rs. 6500 per month. Her son gives her some money. Her husband gives her about two thousand rupees per month, which is not enough to run her house. She is constantly in debts. She often falls sick and looks very anemic. But the houses she works for are very supportive and help her in paying for her medical expenses. Her income is absolutely essential for her family’s survival.

15. Analysis • Most of the women take up unskilled work when they move to urban centres, where expenses are heavy. • Rural areas provide a more dignified life, but no means of income. • All five examples indicate that these women have a liability and a compulsion to earn and look after their families. • They are all uneducated and employed as unskilled domestic workers. • The responsibility of running households are handed over to the women, and male members of the family do not contribute equally to household expenses. • Job insecurities in the informal sector lead to erratic incomes of male members. (The women have no say in the disposal of their earnings.) • There is a dominant feeling of total resignation to their circumstances and acceptance for men's indulgences in non-essential expenses.

16. Conclusion • Women workers are primary earners of their families. Their earnings are necessary for sheer survival. • Socio-economic conditioning and gender inequality is a major factor for lack of economic empowerment in-spite of being an important earning member. • Lack of education and illiteracy compel them to take up unskilled jobs with little or no opportunity for self growth. • Employment in unskilled jobs in informal sector does not empower women socially or economically, instead it creates a situation of “no escape” and more hardships.

17. References • Martha Alter Chem, “ Women in the informal sector: A Global Picture, the Global Movement”, 2002 • inf.worldbank.org/etools/docs/library/module6mc • The World's Women 2010, Trends and Statistics, Department of Economic and Social Affairs • ST/ESA/STAT/SER.K/19 • M. Vanamala, “Informalization and Feminzation of Formal Sector Industry: A Case Study”, EPW, Vol. 36, No. 26 ( June 30 2011), pp 2378 – 89 • ShomaChatterjee, “Women and Work in the Informal Sector in India”, June 14, 2009. • www.worldpulse.com/node/10843

18. Thank You