and, in some regions, from the expansion of global innovator services, even though men and women tend to work in different types of occupations. Figure 2.25 highlights the occupational distribution across sectors. In transportation, women are in the minority, and those working in the sector are much less likely than men to be drivers or machine operators. In financial and business services, women are much more likely than men to perform clerical tasks. And even among occupations with similar shares of female and male employment, women’s lower labor participation means that men continue to outnumber women in these roles. Gender disparities also translate into job quality in terms of wages, where large gender gaps persist. Data from the United States suggest that these wage gaps might be the largest among the global innovator services. Women in financial services and professional services, respectively, earn 39 percent and 29 percent less than men (BLS 2019).
FIGURE 2.25 Across Sectors in LMICs, the Occupational Distribution Differs between Men and Women Decomposition of occupational roles of females and males, by sector, latest available year, 2005–17 100
15
Share of employment (%)
90 80 70 60
29
76
26 64
40
0
9 5 11
5 3 14
8 12
5 15
Female (37%)
Male (63%)
Female (45%)
Male (55%)
Manufacturing
Commerce and hospitality
23 19
65
12
49
30 10
20
10 18
73
50
20
16
24 48
47
32
12 5 17
Female (44%)
Male (56%)
Financial and business services
Female (17%)
Male (83%)
Transportation and communications
Management, professionals, and technicians
Clerical support workers
Sales and personal services workers
Production workers (incl. drivers)
Source: Calculations based on World Bank’s International Income Distribution Dataset (I2D2). Note: The I2D2 is a global harmonized household survey database. The data cover 89 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) across all regions for the latest available year between 2005 and 2017. (Under World Bank income group classifications, LMICs had 1994 gross national income of less than US$8,955.) Percentages in parentheses represent each gender’s share in overall employment in that sector. Employment covers both paid and unpaid forms (for example, contributing family members). “Commerce and hospitality” includes the services subsectors of wholesale and retail trade as well as hotels and restaurants. Occupational groups are defined under the International Labour Organization’s International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO), as follows: “Management, professionals, and technicians” covers ISCO major groups 1, 2, and 3. “Clerical support workers” covers major group 4. “Sales and personal services workers” covers major group 5. “Production workers (including drivers)” covers major groups 7, 8, and 9 (respectively craft workers, plant and machine operators, and elementary occupations). Within the transportation sector, “production workers” includes drivers. Major groups 6 (agricultural workers) and 10 (armed forces) are not reported but have values near 0 percent.
Productivity and Jobs in Services: Mind the Gaps
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