Women at disadvantage in accessing labour market, employment — SIGI

AMMAN — Only 13.8 per cent of women who were previously married are working, while 85.5 per cent have never worked and 7 per cent are looking for jobs, according to a Sisterhood is Global Institute (SIGI) statement.

SIGI, in a statement made available to The Jordan Times, called on the government to give increased attention and support to children, the elderly, citizens with disabilities and patients, as women are generally the ones engaged in unpaid household and care-giving, which results in less time to engage in paid labour. 

According to the 2017-18 Jordan Population and Family Health Survey (JPFHS), 26.5 per cent of divorced women and widows are workers, while the percentage of married women who are workers only reached 12.8, the statement added.

Women’s participation in the labour market is affected by having children, the statement noted, adding that 17.8 per cent of women without children are workers, while the rate drops to 7.2 per cent among mothers with five children or more.  

Child enrollment in early education programmes contribute in increasing economic participation for married women, the statement said.

The 2017-18 JPFHS survey revealed that only 13 per cent of preschool-aged children (three-four years old) have been enrolled in early education programmes, marking a drop of 9 per cent in comparison with the 2012 JPFHS survey results, which indicated a 22-per cent enrollment rate.

The percentage of children enrolled in preschool programmes is associated with their mothers’ level of education, the survey found. The percentage of three- and four-year-olds enrolled in preschool programmes was higher for children whose mothers’ level of education was higher than secondary education, at 23 per cent, while for children whose mothers did not earn a high school degree, the rate was 4 to 7 per cent.

Preschool enrollment in the Kingdom was the highest in Amman, standing at 18 per cent, and the lowest in Maan, at some 3 per cent.