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Women's participation in labor force still limited

Source
Dili Weekly - June 26, 2018

Paulina Quintao – Women's participation in the labor force in Timor-Leste is still limited to 21% compared to men's 40%, according to data from the labor force survey 2015.

The general director of the Secretary of State for Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (SEIGIS), Armando da Costa said there is inadequate participation of women in the labor force because women focus on domestic work.

He said from the existing data analysis, over 50% of women in Timor-Leste do house work, while only 32% of men do not participate in the labor force.

"Domestic work is the main reason for women not to get involved in the labor force," he said in the hall of Fundasaun Oriente, in Dili.

He said this research also shows that 69% of women and 47% of men are engaged in vulnerable employment, including working without a contract with no conditions and protections.

He said the efforts of government and organizations in raising awareness in the communities about gender equality and equal access to opportunities for everyone and the advocacy made with the government to acknowledge all types of work, including domestic work.He added Timorese society often does not consider domestic or house work as active work.

A Dili resident, Maria Fernandes agrees with the statistics because many women have the capacity and are interested in getting involved in the labor force, but they cannot as they must take care of their children first.

She said if the wife and the husband are both employed and if there is no one to look after the children, the wife is expected to quit her job to look after her children and become a housewife."It happens, women always sacrifice their careers for the family," she said.

On the other hand, UN Women representative in Timor-Leste, Sunita Caminha said a woman cannot works when she is expected to look after the children and do house work.

She said there needs to be greater promotion of equal responsibility for house work including taking care of children and doing domestic works because it is not only women's responsibility.

"Personally, now I can work at UN Women because I provide work for one woman and get a benefit from it, she takes my children to school, ensures their health and does domestic works. If I was not able to do this, I would not be able to do the work I do and would not be able to contribute to my family's economy," she said.

Previously non-governmental organizations in Timor-Leste asked political party leaders that ran in the early election 2018 to establish community creche's so women can get involved in the labor force and so they can focus on their careers.

Source: http://www.thediliweekly.com/en/news/15713-women-s-participation-in-labor-force-still-limited

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