Public and private sectors pay women less: World Bank

By Shanika Sriyananda

With the country ranked as having the 14th largest gender gap in labour force participation (LFP) in the world, Sri Lankan women are paid less than men in both the public and private sectors according to the latest findings from a World Bank report.

 “The LFP in Sri Lanka is 36% for women compared to 75% for men in 2016,” the report said.

The average monthly wages between men and women, according to the World Bank report, has a gap of 14.9%. 

Men and women included in the research, conducted in 2015, have represented all provinces and all sectors and found men’s average monthly wage accounted for Rs. 20,840 and women’s average monthly wage was Rs. 17,730.

The World Bank report ‘Getting to Work - Unlocking Women’s Potential in Sri Lanka’s Labor Force’, which was released last week, found that the country’s LFP gap was greater than that of several other South Asian countries, despite Sri Lanka serving as a model for the region in many other gender outcomes.

According to the World Bank’s statistics, only one in three females was in the country’s workforce.

“This gap is surprising given the country’s longstanding achievements in human development outcomes such as high levels of female education and low total fertility rates,” it stated.

According to the report, young Sri Lankan women have the highest unemployment rate in the country, which is 29% for the 15-24 age group in 2016 and the gender gap in youth unemployment has widened since the end of the conflict.

Although Sri Lanka has recorded steady economic growth, the number of women participating in the country’s workforce has decreased to 36 % in 2016 from 41% in 2010. “This situation is a significant challenge to the country’s growth and quality goals such as the present Government targeting to create one million employment opportunities, fostering investment in the private sector and enhancing social inclusion outcomes, as it strives to become an upper middle-income country,” the WB report highlighted.

However, despite significant progress in women’s health and education, female LFP in Sri Lanka remained consistently below middle-income country averages and even declined in recent years.

The report noted that with a rapidly aging population, it was imperative to bring more women into the workforce and reduce barriers to women’s participation in paid work, particularly through childcare services and safe transportation.

“Sri Lanka needs to strengthen girls and boys for early orientation to career development and to acquire the education and skills that prepare them for labour markets,” the World Bank has recommended in its report.

The World Bank has also stated that educational institutions should better prepare female students and match them with highly skilled and high-paying jobs while ensuring gender equal labour laws and a non-discriminatory workplace environment through ethical branding and zero tolerance policies towards sexual harassment.

“While the raw gender wage gap has narrowed over time, it is increasingly determined by discrimination and less so by qualifications. Women are concentrated in low skill jobs and find it even harder to move up the ladder now than before the end of the conflict,” the report said.

This report is prepared for policymakers and employment program practitioners in the Sri Lankan Government, the private sector, donors and NGOs and academics who help the country’s economic growth by employing women, whose potential is yet to be innovatively and productively harnessed.