Women who head their households are associated with a 4.4 per cent higher probability of being in regular wage employment compared with other women workers, according to a new report by SBI Research that uses unit-level data from India’s Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for the first time.
The study links household decision-making roles with improved employment outcomes for women, suggesting that economic responsibility within families may be pushing more women towards relatively stable forms of work.
The finding comes amid broader evidence in the report that women, in general, remain more likely than men to be trapped in informal and insecure jobs, underscoring how the status of being a household head may alter labour market behaviour and outcomes for women.
Using logistic regression analysis on PLFS unit-level data, the researchers find that women who are household heads have a statistically higher likelihood of being in regular wage work. The probability is 4.4 per cent higher than for women who are not household heads.
Regular wage employment, in the context of the study, is associated with better employment protection, higher chances of written contracts, paid leave and social security benefits, all of which are captured through a Work Quality Index (WQI) constructed by the researchers.
The WQI combines three indicators: the presence of a written job contract, eligibility for paid leave, and access to social security benefits. A higher WQI reflects better employment quality.
The association between women household heads and regular wage employment suggests that economic compulsion and responsibility may be pushing such women towards more secure and formal job roles, compared to women who do not carry primary financial responsibility within their families.
States Show Wide Gaps In Work Quality
The report also compares labour force participation rates with employment quality across states and finds stark differences.
States such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Odisha perform well on both labour force participation and work quality, indicating that higher participation is accompanied by better job conditions.
In contrast, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab show both lower participation and lower work quality index, pointing to weaker labour market outcomes in terms of both quantity and quality of jobs.
Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh present a different pattern: higher participation but lower job quality, suggesting that while more people are working, they are not necessarily in protected or formal employment and may lack social security benefits.
Despite the positive association for women household heads, the broader picture for women workers remains challenging.
The report’s logistic regression analysis shows that female workers are 4.8 per cent more likely to be engaged in informal employment compared with male workers. Informal workers, as defined in the study, are those without written contracts, paid leave, or social security coverage.
Across India, nearly 80–90 per cent of the workforce is engaged in informal employment, making it the dominant labour market structure. Women are disproportionately represented in this segment, highlighting their limited access to protected employment.
The study finds that urban workers are around 4 per cent less likely to be informal workers compared to rural workers, and industry composition plays a major role: workers in manufacturing and services are significantly less likely to be informal than those in agriculture.
Regional Patterns Of Informality
Punjab records the highest share of informal workers at 82 per cent, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Bihar at 81 per cent each. Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh also show high informality levels at around 74 per cent.
In contrast, states with diversified industrial and service-sector bases, such as Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Karnataka, show relatively lower levels of informal employment.
Nearly 59 per cent of informal workers are concentrated in rural areas, while 41 per cent are in urban regions. Agriculture alone accounts for 42 per cent of informal employment, followed by trade and hotels at 17 per cent and other services at 14 per cent.
The report also highlights serious concerns over wage compliance for casual workers.
Using state-wise minimum wage data merged with PLFS unit data, the study estimates that around 25 per cent of casual workers in India earn below the statutory minimum wage.
Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Jharkhand show the highest incidence of underpayment, with around 70 per cent, 66 per cent and 65 per cent of casual workers, respectively, earning below minimum wages. Maharashtra and West Bengal also show nearly one-third of casual workers are underpaid.
Women constitute around 45 per cent of all underpaid casual workers despite forming only around 25 per cent of the casual workforce, indicating significant gender disparity in wage compliance.
Training As A Route Out Of Informality
One of the report’s key findings is the role of training in reducing informal employment.
Workers who have received any form of training are associated with a 4.8 per cent reduction in the probability of being informally employed compared with those without training.
Among women, the source of training funding also matters. Government-funded training is associated with a 5.8 per cent rise in the probability of self-employment, while own-funded training is linked with a 3 per cent rise in the probability of regular wage employment.
This suggests that skill development and training interventions may be crucial in shifting women from informal and insecure work into more stable employment categories.
The association between household leadership and better employment outcomes for women indicates that labour market participation is closely tied to economic responsibility and social positioning within families.
However, the broader trends of informality, wage violations and poor job quality in several states suggest that structural labour market reforms, stricter enforcement of minimum wages, and expansion of social security coverage remain critical.
The report calls for stricter implementation of the Minimum Wages Act and greater emphasis on workforce formalisation, particularly in states where both participation and job quality remain low.
For women, especially, the findings suggest that policies encouraging training, skill development and access to formal employment channels could play a key role in improving job quality and income stability. |
