Oil & gas, power, FMCG laggards in women in workforce

The most diverse sector of India Inc is not information technology (IT), but healthcare which has 45% women in the workforce. IT, with a diversity of 34% is a distant second, while consumer services (hospitality and retail) are at number three with 31% diversity, according to the Close the Gender Gap (CGG) Report, a hub for data, insights, tools and resources focused on gender representation within India's formal sector launched by the Udaiti Foundation.

The sectors that have the lowest women representation in the workforce are construction and oil and gas (2% respectively), power (3%) and capital goods (6%). Sectors such as FMCG (13%), media and entertainment (12%) where there is high decibel diversity conversation also have a rather disappointing representation of women in the workforce. The banking sector with 26% diversity has a higher representation of women in the workforce. The CCG report is a collection of data from the annual reports of 2100 NSE listed companies across 23 sectors.

The overall representation of women in the workforce is a mere 19%. Out of the 23 sectors, 16 have less than 15% women. Around 18% of the women hold key managerial positions while 19% are women board of directors.

According to Pooja Sharma Goyal, CEO, Udaiti Foundation, over 73% organisations have gender diversity goals, but only 21% have action plans for achieving their goals. “Therein lies the problem. If we are to make a dent in gender gap at work, companies need to publicly commit and hold themselves accountable to increasing women’s participation through clearly laid out action plans. And the solution cannot be limited to just more women joining the workforce, the approach has to be oriented towards the entire career trajectory that encompasses hiring, retention, advancement and return to work.”

The representation of permanent women employees in the formal sector has increased by 3% FY20-21 to FY22-23. Similarly, the urban female labour force participation rate has also seen a modest increase from 23.2% in FY20-21 to 25.4% in FY22-23.

The realty and healthcare sectors according to the report witnessed a 5% increase in female representation since FY20-21. In contrast, the automobile and construction sectors showed stagnant or minimal growth in female representation. “For instance, only 3.85% of urban women are employed in the construction sector compared to 12.86% urban men. This gap underscores the persistent inaccessibility of certain sectors to women. Companies in these sectors need targeted initiatives to attract and retain female talent, such as mentorship programs, skills training, and creating inclusive workplace cultures,” explains Goyal.

Though the media and entertainment sector hasn’t been as successful in hiring women in the workforce, it has done a better job in terms of ensuring diversity on its boards. While 43% companies have more than one female board of directors (BoD), only 11% have more than two female BoDs, compared to 97% companies with more than two male BoDs. “Companies should implement policies that ensure gender diversity at the board level, such as setting targets for female representation, providing leadership training, and promoting a culture of inclusivity and equity,” says Goyal.