Article

Female Labour Indian Journal of Gender Studies

28(1) 67–89, 2021
Supply in Tamil © 2021 CWDS
Reprints and permissions:
Nadu: Some in.sagepub.com/journals-permissions-india
DOI: 10.1177/0971521520974868
Questions journals.sagepub.com/home/ijg

S. Sundari1

Abstract
In this article, an attempt is made to study the trends and patterns
of female work participation in Tamil Nadu across districts and exam-
ine the effect of structural transformation in the economy on women’s
employment in the decade 2001–2011. There is a wide variation in
the female work participation rate in the state. It is higher in agro-
based, poor and most backward districts and is low in urbanized and
industrialized districts as well as in districts with higher levels of per
capita income, female literacy and unemployment. The analysis here
shows that structural changes in the economy have not resulted in any
dramatic change in the quality and quantity of women’s employment.
Further, the casual labour segment has been expanding in rural Tamil
Nadu with reductions in self-employment.

Keywords
Women’s work participation rate, gender gap, structural changes, casual
labour, Tamil Nadu

1
Mother Teresa Women’s University, Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India.

Corresponding author:
S. Sundari, Mother Teresa Women’s University, Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu 624101, India.
E-mail: sundarimtwu@yahoo.co.in
68 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Introduction
Women’s participation in the labour market is an important indicator of
women’s contribution to the economic growth of a country and is also an
index of women’s overall status in the society (Mammen & Paxson,
2008). The proportion of women who work for pay varies widely from
country to country. According to the Human Development Report by
UNDP (2017), over 86 per cent of women of the age 15+ are in the paid
labour force in Rwanda—highest among the countries of the world—
followed by Uganda (82%). In Canada, Sweden, the USA, the UK and
Germany, the work participation rate (WPR) of women is above 55 per
cent. Among the South Asian countries, Nepal stands first with a female
WPR of 80 per cent followed by China (64%) and Singapore (58%). The
WPR of women in India at 27 per cent is below that of its neighbouring
countries: Bangladesh (43%) and Sri Lanka (30%). Variations across
countries reflect the differences in economic development, education
levels, fertility rates, access to childcare and other supportive services
and social norms (Chaudhary & Verick, 2014).
National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) data shows that female
work participation rate (FWPR) in India has been steadily declining over
the decades. It had dropped from 28.6 per cent in 1993–1994 to 25.9 per
cent in 1999–2000 and to 21.9 per cent in 2011–2012. The recent
publication of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report (Periodic
Labour Force Survey, 2017–2018) presents an alarming decline in FWP in
India to 16.5 per cent. The withdrawal of women from the workforce has
occurred during a period when India was experiencing high average annual
GDP growth of 8 per cent (World Bank, 2012). A plethora of literature has
emerged in recent years both nationally and internationally to explain the
falling trends in women’s employment in India. Most studies attribute it to
expansion of education; increase in the level of household income;
conceptual problems in measurement of women’s work; and lack of job
opportunities for women (Kannan & Raveendran, 2012; Kapsos et al.,
2014; Klasen & Pieters, 2015; Lahoti & Swaminathan, 2013).
Researchers have tried to identify the determinants of female labour
supply in India by region. Male WPR, sex ratio and female literacy rate are
suggested as significant variables that explain female WPR in Punjab
(Kaur & Kaur, 2017). Sociocultural factors such as sex ratio and caste
show a positive association with female work participation in Uttar
Pradesh (Kumar, 2013). Children below 15 years, marital status and num-
ber of people financially dependent on women have a positive impact,
while the time spent at the workplace and in household activities, travel
Sundari 69

time to workplace, size of household income and non-availability of sup-

port systems have a negative impact on labour supply behaviour of urban
women in Tripura (Saha & Kalita, 2015). Sarkhel and Mukherjee (2014)
found that in general the patriarchal family structure and cultural norms
negatively affect women’s labour market participation in India. Studies
have also highlighted the positive impact of Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) on female labour force
participation (Dheeraja et al., 2013; Pandi & Baladhandayutham, 2016).
Thus factors for and against FWP seem to vary from state to state.
Why is there a declining trend in women’s WPR in India alongside
economic growth? This necessitates an in-depth analysis of the growth–
employment relationship in the context of structural changes taking
place within the economy. The present research article aims to look at the
micro-level scenario of FWP across the districts of Tamil Nadu, in South
India.

Objectives of the Study, the Setting and Data

Sources
The following were the aims of the study:

• To understand district-wise trends and patterns of FWPR

• To measure rural/urban disparity in FWPR and also the gender
gap in WPRs
• To examine the effect of structural transformation of the state
economy on patterns of women’s employment across districts
• To identify the factors that account for variations in FWPR across
districts

The study relates to Tamil Nadu state and its 32 districts as on 2011.1 For
inter-district comparison of female work participation in Tamil Nadu, the
32 districts are geographically grouped as follows:

1. Central: Ariyalur, Karur, Nagapattinam, Perambalur, Pudukkottai,

Thanjavur, Thiruvarur and Tiruchirappalli
2. West: Coimbatore, Dharmapuri, Erode, Krishnagiri (formed in
2004), Namakkal, Salem, the Nilgiris and Tirupur (formed in 2009)
3. South: Dindigul, Kanniyakumari, Madurai, Ramanathapuram,
Sivagangai, Theni, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Virudhunagar
70 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

4. North: Chennai (metropolitan city), Cuddalore, Kancheepuram,

Thiruvallur, Thiruvannamalai, Vellore and Villupuram

The study is mainly based on Census data of the years 2001 and 2011.
Other data sources such as NSSO and other time periods are also used
wherever necessary to support the arguments. Work is defined by the
Census of India (Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner,
2011) as participation in any economically productive activity with or
without compensation, wages or profit. It even includes part-time help or
unpaid work on farm, family enterprise or in any other economic activity.
WPR is defined as the percentage of workers to total population of a state
or country (Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner,
2011, p. 15).

Need of the Study

Tamil Nadu is a highly urbanized and industrialized state. Over a
period of time, there has been rapid structural change in the economy.
The share of the primary sector in gross state domestic product (GSDP)
has been declining and that of the modern sector has been increasing.
Structural transformation has been accompanied by changes in the
inter-sectoral mobility of labour. There is therefore a need to review the
trends and patterns of the FWPR in the state. Further, it has been
pointed out that in Tamil Nadu a ‘demographic dividend’2 is at its peak
at the moment and is expected to last a decade or two (State Planning
Commission, 2017).

Structural Changes in the Economy and Women’s

Employment
Tamil Nadu’s economy is undergoing structural change.3 Over time, it
has moved from being an economy based on primary activities to tertiary
activities. In terms of state income (GSDP4), the share of the primary
sector has declined to 9 per cent in 2011–2012. The secondary sector’s
share has remained more or less constant at 30 per cent and the tertiary
sector share has increased to 61 per cent between 1999–2000 and 2011–
2012 (Table 1). The expansion of the tertiary sector implies diversification
Sundari 71

Table 1. Sectoral Composition of GSDP and Women Workers in Tamil Nadu

Sectoral Share in GSDP Sectoral Share of Female Employment

Sector 1999–2000 2011–2012 1999–2000 2011–2012
Primary 17.4 8.9 62.8 40.1
Secondary 29.6 30.1 20.7 39.7
Tertiary 53.0 61.0 16.5 20.2
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Source: National Sample Survey, 1999–2000 (May 2001), and 2011–2012 (January 2014),
Employment and Unemployment Situation in India, 55th Round, Report No. 458, and 68th
Round, Report No. 554, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, National
Statistical Office, New Delhi, Government of India and Tamil Nadu: An Economic
Appraisal, 2003–2004 and 2013–2014, Department of Evaluation and Applied Research,
Government of Tamil Nadu.

of the state economy and with it a shift of labour from the non-service
sector to the service sector.
Looking at female employment across sectors, it is seen that the share
of the primary sector in total female employment has dropped by 22.7
per cent and the share of the secondary and tertiary sectors have increased
by 19 and 3.7 per cent in the decade between 1999–2000 and 2011–2012.
Structural changes have brought about inter-sectoral mobility of female
labour (Table 1). Women’s participation in agriculture is declining and
their employment is increasing in the non-agricultural sectors, partly in
non-manufacturing and service sectors. Although the contribution of the
primary sector to state income has declined significantly, it is still the
major contributor to female employment in the state.

Occupational Segregation
Occupational segregation refers to the disproportionate concentration of
the workforce in particular activities. The Census of India (Office of the
Registrar General & Census Commissioner, 2011) classifies workers
into four groups such as cultivators,5 agricultural labourers,6 household
industries7 and other workers.8 A look at the occupational structure in the
state as a whole in Tamil Nadu indicates that the largest proportion of
women workers are engaged in agriculture followed by their presence in
the category of ‘other workers’. Discussed below is the distribution of
women workers in these main sectors.
72 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Agriculture

As Labourers
In the state as a whole, 55 per cent of women are engaged in agriculture
(42% labourers and 13% cultivators) and the rest in non-agricultural
activities. In agro-based districts such as Ariyalur, Perambalur,
Thiruvarur, Pudukkottai, Dharmapuri, Ramanathapuram, Theni,
Cuddalore, Thiruvannamalai and Villupuram more than 70 to 80 per cent
of women’s employment is in agriculture. In the central districts, nearly
two-thirds of women are dependent on employment in this sector and
there is overcrowding of women as wage labourers (58%) compared to
districts in other regions of Tamil Nadu where the percentage of women
workers in agriculture as labourers varies between 39 and 47 per cent
(Figure 1). Poor and backward districts like Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur
and Villupuram account for a major share of women workers (more than
70%) as agricultural labourers in total female employment. Comparing
the 2001 and 2011 Census data (Office of the Registrar General &
Census Commissioner, 2001, 2011), we see that in 12 districts there is a

Figure 1. Proportion of Female Agricultural Labourers in Total Female

Employment
Source: Based on Census data (Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner,
2011).
Sundari 73

rise in the number of female agricultural labourers and in other districts

it has actually fallen. Industrially well-developed districts such as
Coimbatore register the largest decline in female agricultural labourers
by 10–18 per cent as women are now largely absorbed by the industrial
and service sectors. On the whole, the share of agriculture in women’s
employment declined by 9 per cent in the state during the decade studied.

As Cultivators
In the state as a whole, the share of female cultivators and agricultural
labourers in total female employment has dropped by about 6 and 3
percentage points, respectively, during 2001–2011. Comparing the
statistics for 2001 and 2011, it is seen that female cultivators declined by
0.33 million and female agricultural labourers have increased by 0.39
million in absolute terms. Similarly, in the case of male workers, it is noted
that male cultivators declined by 0.53 million during 2001 and 2011 and
male agricultural workers have simultaneously increased by 0.58 million.
The changes clearly indicate that self-employment in agriculture is
shrinking and wage employment is increasing in rural Tamil Nadu.
A comparison of 2001 Census data with 2011 data shows that women
cultivators have declined in almost all districts of the state with the
exception of Nilgiris and Ariyalur districts. The fall in the cultivator group
is highest in Villupuram district (20%). A study of district data indicates
that Perambalur district has the largest proportion of women cultivators
(38%) and the least proportion is noticed in Kanniyakumari district (2%).

Non-agricultural Sectors
A positive noticeable trend is that all districts of the state with the
exception of Nilgiris and Thoothukudi show a rising trend in women’s
share of employment in the non-agricultural segment over the period
2001–2011. In the developed and moderately developed districts, more
than 60 per cent of women workers do non-agricultural work.

Household Industries
There has been a decline in the share of women workers by 1.9 per cent
and also in the absolute number of women workers (0.08 million) in
74 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

household industry With the exception of Nilgiris district, all the districts
in the state show a fall in the proportion of women workers engaged in
this type of work in the decade 2001–2011. The southern districts of
Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi exhibit the highest decline of more than 9
per cent. Yet, Tirunelveli district in south Tamil Nadu displays the highest
proportion of women workers employed in household industries (38%).
Household industrial activity varies from district to district and is based
largely on local resources. Southern districts of Tamil Nadu such as
Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari (a coastal district) account for large scale
home production. The activities include beedi rolling, mat weaving, mud
pot manufacture, making palmyra products, sea weed cultivation, seafood
processing, pearl oyster culture, cashew nut processing, jewellery produc-
tion, bamboo basket weaving, and local manufacture of coir products,
toys, seat covers, room dividers made out of sea shells and corals and
so on.

‘Other’ Workers
The ‘other’ worker category shows a dramatic increase in the absolute
number of women workers (1.7 million), by a share of 10 per cent during
the decade 2001–2011. Chennai, the metropolitan city, accounts for
more than 90 per cent of women’s employment in the ‘other worker’
category. Over time, all the districts, with the exception of Nilgiris
district, show an increase of women workers in this segment. If the
occupational groupings in the non-agricultural segment are broken up
into smaller components, one can see that despite an increase in the share
of industrial employment, the share of women workers has primarily
risen in the construction sector that falls under the ‘non-manufacturing’
group. About 16 per cent of women workers in Tamil Nadu are employed
in the construction sector (NSSO, 2011–2012).
Table 2 presents the top-five and bottom-five districts in Tamil Nadu
in terms of classification of women workers.

Table 2. Percentage Share of Women Workers by Fourfold Industrial

Classification: Top-Five and Bottom-Five Districts in Tamil Nadu

Top-Five Districts Bottom-Five Districts

Cultivators
Perambalur (38%)—Central Kanniyakumari (1.7%)—South
Ramanathapuram (34%)—West Nilgiris (4.2%)—West
(Table 2 continued)
Sundari 75

(Table 2 continued)

Top-Five Districts Bottom-Five Districts

Dharmapuri (28%)—West
Pudukkottai (26%)—Central
Ariyalur (25%)—Central
Agricultural labourers
Lowest Share
Kanniyakumari (7%)—South
Coimbatore (23%)—West
Kancheepuram (26%)—North
Nilgiris (27.6%)—West
Tirunelveli (27.7%)—South
Household industry
Tirunelveli (38%)—South
Kanniyakumari (15%)—South
Salem (9 %)—West
Ramanathapuram (7%)—South
Erode—West, Thoothukudi—
South and Thiruvallur—North (6%)
Other workers
Chennai (93%)—North
Kanniyakumari (76%)—South
Nilgiris (67%)—West
Coimbatore (66%)—West
Kancheepuram (64%)—North
Source: Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner (2011).
Thiruvallur—North and Tirunelveli—
South (5.1%)
Kancheepuram—North ( 5.2%)
Theni—South (5.4%)
Highest Share
Thiruvarur (73%)—Central
Nagapattinam (70%)—Central
Villupuram (70%)—North
Theni (67%)—South
Cuddalore (62%)—North
Nilgiris—West (1.6 %)
Perambalur—Central (1.7%)
Pudukkottai—Central ( 2.3%)
Nagapattinam—Central and
Villupuram—North (2.4%)
Karur and Thiruvarur—Central (2.7%)
Perambalur (10%)—Central
Ariyalur (12%)—Central
Thiruvarur—Central and
Thiruvannamalai—North (17%)
Pudukkottai—Central (18%)
Nagapattinam—Central, Cuddalore
and Villupuram—North (22%)

FWP in the Districts of Tamil Nadu

FWPR has increased very marginally from 31.5 per cent in 2001 to 31.8
per cent in 2011. Among the districts, large variations are noted in both
the years. An inter-district analysis of 2011 Census data shows that
Perambalur district had the highest percentage of women in the labour
market (48%) and Kanniyakumari district the least (16%).
FWPR by geographical division of districts indicates that the districts
in the west on average show a high participation rate of 37 per cent and the
lowest in the districts of North Tamil Nadu (30%). The highest FWPR is
observed in Perambalur district of the central group of districts (48%),
76 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Namakkal district in the west (43%), Dindigul district in the south (41%)
and Thiruvannamalai district in the north (41%). These districts are
primarily agro-based districts with low levels of per capita income.
Perambalur district is the poorest district in the state and stands second
among the bottom five districts ranked on the basis of per capita income.
Lowest FWPR is seen in the developed districts of the state, namely,
Coimbatore district in west Tamil Nadu, Kanniyakumari in the south and
Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts in north Tamil Nadu.
These districts are well developed in terms of urbanization, industrialization
and per capita income.

Rural–Urban Gap in FWPR

Invariably, and on the whole, in all the districts of the state, FWPR is rela-
tively higher in rural than urban areas making it explicit that the pressure
to take up paid work is greater in rural areas. Further, in rural areas there is
scope for women to work on the family farm and allied activities and also
in non-farm household enterprises. This accounts for higher participation.
Yet rural FWPR has remained almost stagnant, dropping by 0.2 percentage
points from 41.4 per cent in 2001 to 41.2 per cent in 2011.
Although the urban FWPR in 2011 is still low (21.8%), it has increased
from 18.9 per cent in 2001. Overall employment opportunities are
shrinking in rural and expanding in urban areas for women. Districts in
west Tamil Nadu account for the highest rural and urban labour force
participation of women followed by the southern districts. The prime
reason for this trend is that most districts in west Tamil Nadu such as
Coimbatore, Erode, Salem and Tiruppur have well developed female
labour-oriented industries, particularly those dealing with textiles and
apparel. In the southern districts of Tamil Nadu particularly in Tirunelveli
and Virudhunagar, small-scale and household industries (fireworks,
tobacco products, palmyra products, food processing, etc.) are larger in
number and hence women’s WPR is relatively better in south Tamil
Nadu. Industrial development of districts in north Tamil Nadu such as
Chennai, Kancheepuram and Thiruvallur are automobile based and so
the absorption capacity of female labour in these industries is much less.

Changing Trends in FWPR across Districts

A comparison of 2001 and 2011 data on FWPR in the districts of Tamil
Nadu reveals the following:
Sundari 77

• FWPR declined in almost all districts of the state. However a few

districts show a rising trend in FWPR, with Chennai accounting for
the largest increase of 6 percentage points during the decade
followed by Thiruvallur district (4 percentage points). The increase
in FWPR in these two districts may be attributed to the expansion
of the tertiary sector. The information-technology-enabled services
(IT-ITES) sector is the major driver of job opportunities for women
in services ranging from customer care, call centres, medical
transcription, web sales/marketing and back-office operations such
as accounting, data processing and data mining.
• As in 2001, in 2011 too Perambalur district of central Tamil Nadu
recorded the highest rate of FWP (49.7%) and the least FWPR of
13 per cent was found in Kanniyakumari district of south Tamil
Nadu.
• Region-wise analysis shows that in western Tamil Nadu, FWPR
has increased marginally by one percentage point in Dharmapuri,
Salem and Niligiris and has fallen marginally by less than one
percentage point in Coimbatore and Erode districts. Namakkal is
the only district in the west that shows a sharp decline in FWPR
by about 5 percentage points between 2001 and 2011.
• Districts in the south, namely, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and
Virudhunagar, display a fall in FWPR by about 3 percentage points.
• In the central region, with the exclusion of Nagapattinam and
Pudukkottai districts, in all other districts there was a decline in
FWPR during the decade 2001–2011 which varied between 1 and
3 percentage points.
• Northern districts exhibit a different pattern—in all the seven
districts the FWPR has actually increased.
• Thus out of 30 districts, the FWPR rate has registered an increase
in 14 districts resulting in an overall increase of 0.3 percentage
points for the state which is a negligible increase for a decade.

Looking at rural/urban components of FWPR across districts, it can be

seen that in 26 out of 30 districts, FWPR of women in urban areas has
increased in the decade (2001–2011). Contrary to this trend, in 16
districts out of 30, FWPR in rural areas has actually declined. Thus the
increase in women’s employment in urban areas has been offset by the
simultaneous decline in women’s employment in the rural sector; this
has maintained the level of overall stagnation of women’s employment
in Tamil Nadu during the decade.
In 2001, in 8 out of 30 districts, the FWPR was above 40 per cent and
in 7 districts it ranged between 35 and 40 per cent. Only in two districts,
78 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Kanniyakumari and Chennai, was the FWPR less than 15 per cent. In
2011, while no district was found with FWPR of less than 15 per cent,
the number of districts with more than 40 per cent of FWPR had declined
from eight to six. Overall, the range of FWPR across districts does not
show any remarkable improvement over the decade 2001–2011 as in
nearly 50 per cent of the districts, FWPR is below 35 per cent.

Male–Female Gap in WPR

The gender gap is found to be the highest in Kanniyakumari district in
south Tamil Nadu (40%) and in Chennai, the state capital located in
north Tamil Nadu (39%). The lowest gender gap of 9 percentage points
is seen in Perambalur district of central Tamil Nadu. While the gender
gap in WPR in urban areas of all districts varies between 28 and 41 per
cent, in rural areas it ranges between 5 and 30 per cent with the exception
of Kanniyakumari district where the rural gender gap in WPR is as high
as 39 per cent. On the whole, the gender gap in Kanniyakumari district is
consistently high in both urban and rural areas.
In Tamil Nadu, rural areas display a lower gender gap in WPR than the
urban areas. In fact the gender gap in urban areas is almost double the size
of the gender gap found in rural areas. The northern districts show a higher
gender gap in WPR both in rural and urban areas due to poor FWPR
especially in the districts of Thiruvallur, Kancheepuram and Chennai.
The overall trend and pattern observed is that the gender gap in WPR
is lower (<20 percentage points) in the poor and backward districts such
as Perambalur, Thiruvannamalai, Villupuram, Dharmapuri and Ariyalur
and higher (>35 percentage points) in urbanized and industrialized
districts such as Chennai, Coimbatore, Thiruvallur and Kanniyakumari.
The gender gap in WPR has increased by one percentage point for the
state as a whole during the decade (2001–2011), with the majority of
districts displaying an increase in the male/female gap in WPR.

Factors Explaining Variations in FWPR

Inter-district variability in FWPR may be explained with the help of the
following factors:

1. Level of development of the district

2. Sectoral contribution to gross district domestic product (GDDP)
Sundari 79

3. Per capita income

4. Standard of living
5. Female literacy
6. Unemployment rate

District-level Development
District-level development is measured in terms of GDDP.9 More than
one-third of the contribution to GSDP (state income) is by the northern
districts (34%), followed by the districts in the west (27%) and south
(25%).The well-developed industrial districts such as Coimbatore (called
the Manchester of South India), Kancheepuram and Thiruvallur account
for more than 6 per cent share in GSDP. Chennai (known as the Detroit
of India) with its large service sector and industries contributes the
maximum of 7 per cent to GSDP.
The share of all the agricultural districts in the central region to GSDP
is the least (14%). Pudukkottai, Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur, Thanjavur
and Tiruchirappalli in the central region are the main agricultural districts
in the Cauvery delta region. Dharmapuri, Salem, Namakkal and Nilgiris
districts in the west, Dindigul, Ramanathapuram, Sivagangai and Theni
districts in the south and Villupuram, Thiruvannamalai and Cuddalore
districts of north Tamil Nadu are also predominantly agricultural districts.
Except Tiruchirappalli and Salem all the other agro-based districts
including Thanjavur (granary of the South) are economically backward
and the incidence of poverty is relatively higher in these districts10 which
is the chief cause of women’s entry into the agricultural labour market.
There has been significant growth in district income (GDDP) by 7.72
per cent but there is no corresponding improvement in FWPR which has
increased just by 0.09 per cent during the decade (2001–2011). The
correlation coefficient between FWPR and GDDP is negative (r = −0.5)
and is also found to be significant at one per cent level. This calls into
question whether economic development has a negative impact on
women’s participation in the labour market.

Sectoral Contribution to GDDP

A study of sectoral contributions to the GDDP reveals that in agricultural
districts the primary sector’s share in GDDP is significant and is over 30
80 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

per cent. Most districts are economically poor owing to dependency on

the primary sector for employment and income which perpetuates the
vicious circle of poverty. Women in agriculture, largely labourers, are
paid the least, their employment and income are highly unstable owing
to the casual nature of employment and also because of the dependence
of agriculture on the monsoon. Lack of non-farm employment worsens
the situation of rural women. Debt at high rates of interest adds to the
poverty of rural labour households (The daily wage of female workers in
Tamil Nadu: Agriculture— Rs.93.71, construction work— Rs.142.99
and other casual works—Rs.110.41).11 In urbanized and industrialized
districts such as Chennai, Kanniyakumari, Kancheepuram, Thiruvallur,
Virudhunagar and Coimbatore, the manufacturing and tertiary sectors
contribute a high percentage to district income, and the primary sector’s
contribution is insignificant. The share of the secondary sector to GDDP
ranges between 38 and 52 per cent among the developed districts and is
less than 14 per cent in backward districts. The tertiary sector’s
contribution to GDDP varies between 50 and 70 per cent in industrially
developed districts.
A positive correlation coefficient is seen between the proportion of
primary sector contribution to GDDP and FWPR (r = 0.5) and is also
statistically significant at 1 per cent level. A similar trend of positive
correlation coefficient is noted in the case of FWPR and the number of
women employed in the agricultural sector, which means that districts
which account for higher participation of women in agriculture are the
ones that display higher levels of FWPR. Higher WPR of women in agro
based and poor districts raises the question whether women enter the
labour market only under economic distress and exit when the situation
improves.

Per Capita Income

Household income is another important supply side factor determining
FWPR. As data on household income is not available, per capita income is
used as a proxy to explain the inter-district variability in FWPR.
Kanniyakumari district ranks first in per capita income but it records the
lowest FWPR in the state. Apart from this district, the lowest FWPRs of
less than 25 per cent are seen in Chennai, Kancheepuram, Thiruvallur,
Thanjavur, and Madurai districts. (While Kancheepuram district stands
second among the top-five districts in terms of per capita income,
Sundari 81

Thiruvallur district occupies the fifth and last position). The results suggest
a negative correlation between per capita income and FWPR (r = −0.39)
which is significant at 5 per cent level. Why there is a negative income
effect on women’s labour market participation needs to be examined.

Standard of Living
Standard of living12 is another important factor that may explain the
inter-district variability in FWPR. The results suggest a negative
correlation between standard of living and FWPR (r = –0.38) which is
significant at 5 per cent level.. Thus the results indicate that the higher
the standard of living, the lower the participation of women in paid work.
It is interesting to note here that the districts that were ranked as the top
five and bottom five in terms of per capita income are the ones that come
within the top five and bottom five in terms of the standard of living
index. This suggests that the higher the per capita income, the higher the
standard of living alongside lower FWPR.

Female Literacy
Education is also an important factor which determines the supply of
female labour. The literacy rate of females in Tamil Nadu has improved
remarkably from 64 per cent in 2001 to 73 per cent in 2011. Except
Kanniyakumari district, in all other districts of the state, female literacy
has increased by 6 percentage points during 2001–2011, and FWPR has
increased by 0.3 percentage points in the state. Analysing the top five
and bottom five districts in terms of female literacy, it is to be inferred
that economically developed districts such as Kanniyakumari, Chennai,
Kancheepuram and Thiruvallur are also socially well developed in terms
of literacy. In poor and backward districts such as Ariyalur, Perambalur,
Villupuram and Thiruvannamalai female literacy is much below the
state’s level of 73 per cent.
Despite a rise in female literacy in the state by 9 percentage points
in the decade, FWP has actually declined by more than three percentage
points in districts such as Ariyalur, Karur, Erode, Namakkal and
Virudhunagar. While female literacy in Kanniyakumari district
increased by five percentage points, FWPR has increased by 3 percent-
age points, indicating a positive association between education and
82 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

FWPR. On the whole, there is an invariable increase in the female lit-

eracy rate in all the districts of the state but at the same time there is also
a reduction in the proportion of female workers in more than half the
number of districts. The correlation coefficient between female literacy
and female WPR for the state of Tamil Nadu is not only negative
(r = –0.8) but is also significant at 1 per cent. Overall in rural areas there
is a downward movement and in urban areas there is no significant
improvement in FWPR with expansion of education. This leads to the
question: Why with more education there are fewer women in the labour
market?

Unemployment Rate
Lack of employment opportunities is one of the main reasons for the
declining trend in rural women’s employment in the country (Ramesh &
Srivastava, 2014). Rural women’s work participation has actually
declined by 0.2 percentage points in Tamil Nadu during the decade
2001–2011. An examination of NSSO data on unemployment for the
period 1999–2000 and 2011–2012 reveals that unemployment has
increased for rural women by 3 percentage points and has declined by
0.7 percentage points among urban women. With the declining share of
the primary sector in GSDP employment is also declining in the rural
sector. Unemployment statistics support the argument that the drop in
female employment in rural areas is primarily due to lack of non-farm
jobs. The increase in rural unemployment among women workers is
surprising in the context of the successful implementation of MGNREGA
in Tamil Nadu since 2006 with women’s participation as high as 82 per
cent in the scheme (Department of Rural Development, 2014).
District-wise analysis of female unemployment data indicates that
Kanniyakumari district shows the highest rate of female unemployment
(21%) followed by Chennai (16.8%). These two districts account for the
least female WPR in the state. So it may be inferred that unemployment
may also be one of the reasons for lower FWP in these districts. An
inverse relationship is seen between FWPR and female unemployment
rate (r = –0.61 ) which is significant at one per cent level. Why structural
transformation of the economy has failed to generate sufficient
employment opportunities for women in both developed and backward
districts of the state requires serious investigation.
Sundari 83

Main Findings from District Data on FWPR: A

Summary
• There is a wide range of FWPR across districts in Tamil Nadu.
Districts in the west and central Tamil Nadu show higher
participation rates of women than the districts in south and north
Tamil Nadu. Factors such as the size of district income, the share
of sectoral contribution to district income, per capita income,
standard of living, female literacy and unemployment rate account
for the variations in FWPR across the districts.
• Rural areas display higher FWPR than the urban areas in all districts
of the state. With the declining share of the primary sector in state/
district income, there has been a shift in female employment out of
agriculture but FWP in Tamil Nadu is still relatively higher in
predominantly agricultural, poor and industrially backward districts
and is low in developed districts with higher levels of per capita
income, female literacy and unemployment. The gender gap in
WPR is higher in urban than rural areas and the gap is rising. Rural
Tamil Nadu is also experiencing a drop in female employment
owing to lack of non-farm jobs.
• Higher literacy rates along with an increase in per capita income
are not associated with women’s employment in the state.

Conclusions
Overall, there has been no improvement in women’s employment in Tamil
Nadu in the decade studied (2001–2011) despite a rise in state GDP/per
capita income, increase in female literacy and decline in fertility rates.13
Structural changes in the Tamil Nadu economy have not contributed to an
increase in women’s employment, and stagnation continues.
The status of women’s employment is assessed in terms of regularity
of employment and income. A comparison of NSS data for 2011–2012
with NSS estimates for 1999–2000, reveals that on the one hand there is
an increase in regular wage/salaried employment of women workers in
urban areas and on the other, there is an increase in casual labour among
women workers in rural areas from 55 to 63 per cent (Figure 2). A similar
trend is noticed in the case of rural male workers. This implies that self-
employment for both men and women is shrinking in rural areas. In
terms of numbers, the FWPR is relatively higher in poorer districts than
84 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Figure 2. Distribution of Women Workers in Tamil Nadu by Employment

Status
Source: Based on NSSO, 1999–2000 and 2011–2012.

the developed ones. In terms of quality, the casual labour segment is

expanding in rural areas at the cost of self-employment. The incidence of
poverty is relatively higher among this segment of the working population
compared to other segments of the workforce owing to instability in
income. The statistics show that only about seven per cent of women in
Tamil Nadu are employed in the formal sector implying the poor quality
of women’s employment in the state.
In the changing economy, agriculture is becoming unprofitable
particularly for small and marginal farmers due to rising input costs and
wages, monsoon failure and periodic drought. Competition between
agricultural and non-agricultural uses of land is also intensifying,
resulting in a significant drop in the area under cultivation. Fall in self-
employment has also precipitated large-scale out-migration of male
workers. The casual labour segment is expanding, which is a cause for
concern. Casualization as a whole has pushed a vast majority of workers
who were formerly agricultural labourers, small and marginal farmers
and the self-employed into brick-kilns, quarries and construction
elsewhere. Conversely, in urban Tamil Nadu, the number of regular
wage/salaried workers is rising with reductions in casual wage labour.
While the contribution of the secondary sector to state income has
increased, there is no corresponding rise in the regular wage/salaried
employment in rural areas.
Sundari 85

Economic growth based largely on services has resulted in jobless

growth. Like the trend found in the national economy, development in
Tamil Nadu is led by the service sector (61% contribution to state GDP),
but this sector has not been a driver of employment creation for women
workers (only 20% of women are employed in this sector). Simultaneously,
the manufacturing sector has failed to create sufficient job opportunities
for women due to its sluggish growth performance. A significant degree
of industrialization is required in the state for job creation.
Interestingly, the data reveals that female work participation is lower
in districts where female literacy/educational level is high this appears to
imply that a choice is being made by women to stay at home. Job deficits
among women educated up to the secondary level on the one hand and
the burden of domestic duties on the other could explain this. Even the
recent PLFS (Periodic Labour Force Survey, 2017–2018) shows that the
number of young girls/women (15–29 years) attending to domestic
duties has increased from 45.9 per cent in 2004–2005 to 52.3 per cent in
2017–2018 and the number of women in the productive age group of
30–59 years attending to domestic duties has also increased from 46 per
cent in 2004–2005 to 65.4 per cent in 2017–2018. Additionally, PLFS
data (2017–2018) shows that women with middle and secondary school
education are largely engaged in domestic duties compared to highly
educated women. Thus it can be seen that women’s disproportionate
share of domestic work has a negative impact on their labour market
outcomes at educational levels less than university degrees.
The study finds that negative income effect, lack of suitable jobs for
educated women and women’s choice of unpaid domestic to paid work
have contributed to lower FWPR. That women even with some education
are staying out of the labour market in large numbers is a matter of
concern for everyone because from the development perspective it
implies wastage and underutilization of human resources, and from the
gender standpoint greater workforce participation is crucial for the
economic empowerment of women. Employment and earning an income
are believed to strengthen women’s decision making power within the
household. A fall in the employment of women reduces their leverage
and power in the household.
Generation of employment opportunities for women in the
manufacturing sector, equal wages for women on par with men and
provision of support systems such as childcare are likely to encourage
women’s entry into and retention in the workforce at different levels.
Awareness programmes and affirmative action policies are also needed
to address gender stereotypes. The media can be used as an important
86 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

platform to break the traditional norms that assign the roles of ‘care
giver’ and domestic slave to women and the breadwinner role to men,
norms that also devalue the foundational work of women in households.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research,
authorship and/or publication of this article.

Funding
This article is based on the research project titled “Structural Changes in the
Labour Market and Female Labour Force Participation in India: Theoretical
Models, Empirical Evidence and Policy Implications”. My sincere thanks to
Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi for the financial support
towards this project.

Notes
1. In 2001, there were only 30 districts in Tamil Nadu.
2. According to the United Nations Population Fund, demographic dividend
means ‘the economic growth potential resulting from shifts in a population’s
age structure, mainly when the share of the working-age population (15–64)
is larger than the share of non-working-age population (14 and younger, and
65 and older)’. India has a large youth population in the age group of 15–59
years, constituting about 64.4 per cent of the total population (https://www.
gktoday.in/gk/demographic-dividend/).
3. The structure of an economy includes three major sectors: primary, second-
ary and tertiary The primary sector includes agriculture and allied activities,
the secondary sector includes manufacturing and non-manufacturing indus-
tries and the tertiary sector consists of services. The structural change of an
economy is measured in terms of: (a) change in the relative share of three
sectors contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) and (b) change in the
share of the labour force engaged in each sector.
4. GSDP is defined as a measure in monetary terms, of the volume of all
goods and services produced within the boundaries of the state during a
given period of time, accounted without duplication. (https://data.gov.in/
keywords/gross-state-domestic-product)
5. Cultivator: A person is classified as cultivator if he or she is engaged in cul-
tivation of one’s own land or as tenants on land owned by the government,
private persons or institutions for a return in terms of money or share or in
kind. Workers engaged in plantation crops are recorded in the classification
as ‘other workers’.
6. Agricultural labourer: A person who works on another person’s land for
wages in cash or kind or share is regarded as an agricultural labourer.
Sundari 87

7. Household industry worker: Household industry is defined as an industry

conducted by one or more members of the household at home or within
the village in rural areas and in urban areas only within the precincts of the
house where the household lives. The activity may relate to the production,
processing, servicing, repairing or making and selling of goods.
8. Other worker: All workers other than cultivators or agricultural labourers or
household industry workers are ‘other workers’.
9. GDDP is defined as a measure in monetary terms of the volume of all goods
and services produced within the boundaries of a district during a given
period of time, accounted without duplication.
10. Districts with high rural and urban poverty in Tamil Nadu:

Rural Urban
Percentage of Poor Percentage of Poor
Districts Below Poverty Line Below Poverty Line
Thiruvannamalai 16.3 20.5
Villupuram 58.6 22.6
Nilgiris 28.1 17.1
Cuddalore 46.0 31.0
Sivagangai 33.1 –
Ramanathapuram 17.8 –
Dharmapuri and Theni – 10.0
Source: Tamil Nadu Human Development Report, 2017, Government of Tamil Nadu.

11. Source: NSSO, 2011–2012.

12. The standard of living index is computed by Tamil Nadu Human Development
Report (2017) with reference to the indicators such as access to cooking
fuel, toilet facilities, drinking water, electricity and pucca (solid ) house.
13. Fertility rates (birth woman) in Tamil Nadu has declined from 2.1 in 2001 to
1.7 in 2011 (NITI Aayog, http://niti.gov.in).

References
Chaudhary, R., & Verick, S. (2014). Female labour force participation in India
and beyond (Working Paper Series). ILO Asia Pacific. www.ilo.org/publns
Department of Rural Development. (2014). Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme Tamil Nadu. Government of Tamil Nadu.
https://tnrd.gov.in/schemes/nrega.html
Dheeraja, C., Madhuri, N. V., & Daimari, A. (2013). Research study on factors
facilitating participation of women in Mahatma Gandhi NREGS (Research
Report Series No. 98). National Institute of Rural Development, Hyderabad.
Kannan, K. P., & Raveendran, G. (2012). Counting and profiling the missing
labour force. Economic & Political Weekly, 47(6), 77–80.
88 Indian Journal of Gender Studies 28(1)

Kapsos, S., Bourmpoula, E., & Silberman, A. (2014). Why is female labour force
participation declining so sharply in India? (ILO Research Paper No. 10).
https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---inst/documents/
publication/wcms_250977.pdf
Kaur, G., & Kaur, H. (2017). Female employment in Punjab: An inter-district
analysis. International Journal of Engineering, Technology, Management
and Applied Sciences, 5(6), 412–423.
Klasen, S., & Pieters, J. (2015). What explains the stagnation of female labour
force participation in urban India? The World Bank Economic Review, 29(3),
449–478.
Kumar, P. K. (2013). Female work participation in Uttar Pradesh: Trends and
determinants (Article report). www.indiastat.com/SOCIO_PDF/87/fulltext.
pdf
Lahoti, R., & Swaminathan, H. (2013). Economic growth and female labour
force participation in India (Working Paper No. 414). Indian Institute of
Management, Bangalore.
Mammen, K., & Paxson, C. (2008). Women’s work and economic development.
The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 14(4), 141–164.
National Sample Survey, 1999–2000. (May 2001). Employment and
unemployment situation in India, 55th round (Report No. 458). Ministry
of Statistics and Programme Implementation, National Statistical Office,
Government of India, New Delhi.
National Sample Survey, 2011–2012. (January 2014). Employment and
unemployment situation in India, 68th Round (Report No. 554). Ministry
of Statistics and Programme Implementation, National Statistical Office,
Government of India, New Delhi.
Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner. (2001). Census of
India. Tamil Nadu Series. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India,
New Delhi.
Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner. (2011). Census of
India. Tamil Nadu Series. Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India,
New Delhi.
Pandi, J. S., & Baladhandayutham, K. (2016). Impact of MGNREGA on rural
livelihoods: A study in Karur district of Tamil Nadu. International Journal of
Management and Development Studies, 5(3), 40–48.
Periodic Labour Force Survey, 2017–2018. (May 2019). Periodic Labour Force
Survey Annual Report. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation,
National Statistical Office, Government of India, New Delhi.
Ramesh, C., & Srivastava, S. K. (2014). Changes in the rural labour market and
their implications for agriculture. Economic & Political Weekly, 49(10),
47–54.
Saha, P., & Kalita, M. (2015). Determinants of female work participation and
labour supply behaviour of urban women in Tripura: A logit estimation.
Social Change and Development, 22(1), 77–87.
Sundari 89

Sarkhel, S., & Mukherjee, A. (2014). Culture, discrimination and women’s

work force participation: A study on Indian labour market. https://pdfs.
semanticscholar.org/
State Planning Commission. (2017). Tamil Nadu human development report.
Government of Tamil Nadu, Chennai. http://www.spc.tn.gov.in/tnhdr2017.
html
UNDP. (2017). Human development report. http://hdr.undp.org/en/year/2017
World Bank. (2012). World development report: Gender equality and
development. https://siteresources.worldbank.org