Punjab tops with 7.2 million household women workforce: survey

Around 12 million women were engaged in different domestic-based business in the country, in which Punjab is the top with 7.2 million household women workforce, said in a survey report launched by Roots Equality here on Monday.
The research study report titled "Unacknowledged Treasures: The home-based women Labour in Pakistan" launched here by Dr Azra Talat Saeed, executive director, Roots Equality, Karachi based-Non-Governmental Organisation during a ceremony held at Peshawar Press Club.
Flanked by Hamida Akber, research co-ordinator, she said that the research study was carried out in 24 districts of the country, according to which the home-based urban women work force is around 0.3 million with 26 percent, whereas in rural areas is about 8.5 million with 74 percent in the country.
She said that the Punjab is the top regarding home-based women workers, where more than 7.2 million women are engaged in different domestic level business. She explained that the Sindh is the second largest province wherein 2.6 million household women workforce.
Similarly, she said that in Balochistan the ratio of domestic women workers is about 65 lakhs , whereas in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa home-based business ratio is comparatively very low to other province, as around 1.6 million women are involved in different domestic business in the province.
Dr Azra expressed grave concern over the growing home-based women workers exploitation in the country. She explained that there are three major factors behind the discrimination of household women force.
Firstly, she said the income generation is very low, as most of home-based women workers are resisted rental and substance charges by their own expensive. Secondly, she said social taboos and traditions are another factors behind the female-workers in the society. Lastly, she informed that the growing inflation is compelling to share women's contribution of income generation along with other family owners.
The study showed that more than 50 percent of the household income of HBWW is around Rs 2,000 per month, which was injustice with domestic working women. Most of the women were engaged themselves in different business at house level due to financial constraints, she informed.
Ironically, she said that around 41 percent domestic women workers were earning less than RS 900 per month, saying that the teenager girls are the predominated as compared to boys workers in the country.
Dr Azra informed that the investors are exploiting the rights of home-based women workers, due to lack of implementation of binding policy for them. She added that the most of the household women workers are bearing cost of production and other rental charges to fulfil agreement. Similarly, she informed the woman worker is maximum engaged in time consuming works of different kind of expense.