Heintz Ghana Labour Force

Women, Work, and Poverty in Ghana: 

Women, Work, and Poverty in Ghana Background Study for Progress of the World’s Women 2005

Labour force segmentation: 

Labour force segmentation Not all employment is the same: employment status & employment arrangements matter. Employment Status. examples: wage worker, own-account worker, unpaid worker on a family enterprise. Type of Employment. formal v. informal Gender Segmentation. Sectoral Differences. Agricultural and non-agricultural.

The case of Ghana: 

The case of Ghana Ghana Living Standards Survey 1998/99 (GLSS 4) Definitions: Informal self-employment: is the enterprise registered with a government agency? Informal wage employment: social protection criteria (paid leave and employer-provided pension). Other countries: Costa Rica, Egypt, El Salvador, India, South Africa.

Background - Ghana: 

Background - Ghana Labour force participation rates (15+): 87 percent for women, 89.6 percent for men. Agriculture accounts for 54 percent of employment. Informal (ag. and non-ag.) employment accounts for 91 percent of total employment.

Slide5: 

Distribution of employed population (15+) by sex in selected employment statuses, 1998/9, Ghana. Source: GLSS 4, 1998/9. * not significantly different from zero.

Main Findings: 

Main Findings Evidence of labour force segmentation by employment status and sex. Women have significantly less access to wage employment (formal and informal). Informal wage employment is generally superior to informal own account employment (earnings). A gender gap in earnings is apparent across all employment status categories. Earnings are lowest in agriculture (dominated by men’s employment). Women work somewhat fewer hours in income-generating activities, but much longer hours in unpaid care activities.

The Working Poor: 

The Working Poor The “working poor” are defined as individuals who (1) are employed and (2) live in households whose incomes fall below a specified poverty line. Risk of poverty is lower: in non-agricultural relative to agricultural employment in formal wage employment in formal self-employment relative to informal self-employment Poverty rates differ among segments of the informal labour force: Informal wage employment v. informal self-employment Unpaid workers on family enterprises

Working poor women: 

Working poor women Women are concentrated in types of employment with high risks of poverty. However, within an employment status category there is no clear gendered pattern. Household dynamics are important: number of earners, reproductive choices, intra-household division of labour, etc. Employment and poverty in Ghana: complex issues – households and individuals. However, employment is central for understanding poverty.

Slide9: 

Working poor as a percent of employment (15+) in selected employment statuses by sex, 1998/9, Ghana.

Slide10: 

Poverty rates by household type, 1998/9, Ghana. --- = 20 observations or less Source: GLSS 4, 1998/9.

Slide11: 

Average hourly earnings (cedis per hour) in selected employment statuses by sex, employed population (15+), Ghana. (2004 prices). --- = less than 20 observations. Source: GLSS 4, 1998/9.

Slide12: 

Average hours spent per week in non-remunerative household work by employment status and sex, employed population (15+), 1998/9, Ghana. --- = less than 20 observations. Source: GLSS 4, 1998/9.