Gender Inequality in Construction Work

Gender inequality is broader concept which is deep rooted in society. Unequal treatment of women in social life is strikingly pervasive - no matter whether they are engaged in household work or working outside as paid labour. Though gender based discriminations and inequalities do exist in all segments and walks of world of work, such differential treatment becomes more blatant and acute when it comes to women's work in the informal sector. Women's work in construction sector is a good example for visible gender based inequalities in informal sector work. Construction industry is one of the industries which is characterised by very little unpaid labour and higher proportions of migrant workers (both men and women). Though the construction industry includes large number of female workforce but still in comparison to men their number is very small. In the above backdrop, the present paper discusses the direct and implicit gender-based inequalities in the world of informal work - based on an in-depth field study of migrant construction workers in Okhla area of New Delhi.