Indonesia’s female labour force participation remains low
- Charles Chau
- Topics: DE&I, Health and Wellness, Home Page - News, Indonesia, News
Data from the manpower ministry showed that, as of August 2021, female workers’ TPAK was 53.34%, while that of male workers was 82.27%.
Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah said that out of the total workforce of around 140 million people in Indonesia, women only make up about 40%. She said this at a recent virtual discussion on gender shaming in the workplace organised by PLN Peduli.
Year-on-year, female workers’ workforce participation rate in 2021 grew marginally from 2020’s 53.13%, she said, adding that the rate was 51.81% in 2019.
The minister also noted that the participation of Indonesian women in the labour market work is lower than in some neighbouring countries, such as Vietnam and Thailand.
“The phenomenon is considered related to the patriarchal culture that is still widely practiced in society, which associates women’s role with domestic work,” she said.
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“One of the evidences of discrimination against women in the workplace is the difference in wages. It is found that the average wage for female labourers from all levels of education and age groups is still far below the wage of male labourers,” Fauziyah said, according to Antara News.
