Why work for women (still) doesn't work

Why work for women (still) doesn't work

unpaid work, sexual harassment, violence, low wages and the "mother penalty" - these are just a few of the challenges with which millions of women are confronted in the workplace in 2025. Despite the progress in the direction of global gender justice, it is still mainly men who take the best paid positions in the various industries worldwide, while many women are typically entrusted with less respected tasks in companies and supply chains. Numerous women worldwide still fight to find a job and often have to work in precarious jobs or work in the informal sector just to make ends meet. Overall, women still have a disproportionate proportion of unpaid care and housework, which confirms the statement by the United Nations Secretary General, António Guterres, that global poverty has a female face.

challenges for women at work

"If the amount and quality of the workplaces disadvantaged women, the risk of poverty increases," said Sally Rover, who used to be international coordinator at Women in informal employer: Globalizing and Organizing (Wiego), a global network that aims to improve working conditions for women in the informal economy. Labor market experts emphasize that the world of work excludes, undermined, overlooked and exploited about half of their available workers - and that the current work structures do not do justice to women.

What is work and why does it not work for women?

The International Working Organization (ILO) defines work as "every activity carried out by people of all sex and age to produce goods or to provide services for use by other or for their own needs." But Roever found that "most economies simply do not create enough jobs". Gender -specific norms often determine which professions are available or accessible to women, which forced women to "invent their own income -generating activities". According to ILO, the most common form of work is informal and unregulated worldwide. Almost 60 % of all workers work in this type of work that mostly includes women in the global south.

The role of women in the informal economy

Although informal work is most widespread in developing countries, it also plays an important role in advanced economies, as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) determines. Informal work includes many different forms, including street sellers, non -registered taxi drivers, household workers and day laborers. Women who work in the formal sector often do not have the same legal claims as men. According to a report by the World Bank from 2024, there are no laws in more than 90 countries that prescribe the same payment for equivalent work, while many other women deny access to certain industries such as construction or manufacturing industry. In some countries it is forbidden to work in professions classified as "too dangerous", and other bans concern the nightly work of women.

The employment of women in the formal economy

In the formal sector, women typically take lower, less paid roles and can only be found in professions that are "traditionally considered women -centered". For example, women make up 67 % of global health and social care staff and offer essential health services for an estimated five billion people worldwide. Nevertheless, men are represented in this sector in about 75 % of management positions, as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO). Women are "always stuck on the ground", explained Emanuela Pozzan, an expert in gender equality and non -discrimination in the ILO. This in turn limits "the variety of perspectives in decision -making processes", which hinders progress in society and organizations.

The invisible burden on nursing work

unpaid care work is an obstacle for women who want to actively participate in the labor market. This imbalance means that women are marginalized and in many parts of the world without social security and income stability, experts warn.