Winners and losers: gender disparities in the South African labour market

Abstract

Drawing on data from Quarterly Labour Force Surveys and the 2011 Census conducted by Statistics South Africa, this policy brief interrogates the gains women have made in entering different sectors of the economy and their location in those sectors. Given the global context of women's participation in the labour market, the fundamental question that this policy brief addresses is as follows: Do the changes in women's occupational participation represent a holistic shift with respect to other indicators of labour-market participation?