Women Labeled 'Unskilled'
- A social thread highlighted that women working in construction are often called “unskilled” despite experience. (x.com) - The post said many of these women face wage gaps and lack formal maternity benefits. (x.com) - The commentary pointed to systemic exclusion from worker protections in traditionally male sectors. (x.com)
Women on construction sites are often hired as “helpers,” paid less than men, and left outside basic protections even when they do the same work. (ilo.org) In India, construction accounts for 9% of gross domestic product and employs about 71 million people, according to the International Labour Organization. The same 2025 ILO report said only 12% of the sector’s workforce is female, and just 2% of women in the sector hold senior management roles. (ilo.org) That report, released in Mumbai on April 30, 2025 by the International Labour Organization, the Employers’ Federation of India, and the Confederation of Indian Industry, said many women remain concentrated in low-paid jobs. It put women’s average daily wage at 412 Indian rupees and said women in the informal segment earn 30% to 40% less than men. (ilo.org) A big part of the gap is how the work is classified. Women may carry bricks, mix mortar, or work full shifts on sites, but hiring systems often place them in the lowest rung, with little access to training that would move them into mason, machine, or supervisory jobs. (ilo.org) The legal picture is split. India’s Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996 created welfare boards and requires basic site facilities including drinking water, latrines, first aid, and crèches, but maternity benefits under the separate Maternity Benefit Act apply to specified establishments rather than automatically to all casual construction work. (clc.gov.in 1) (clc.gov.in 2) That is why access often depends on registration instead of employment status alone. Government service portals in states including Haryana and Punjab list maternity benefit schemes for women registered with Building and Other Construction Workers welfare boards, showing that support exists but is tied to enrollment and state-level administration. (services.india.gov.in) (india.gov.in) The problem is larger than one trade or one country. The International Labour Organization says informal employment leaves workers more exposed to low pay, weaker safety standards, and poorer working conditions, and it identifies informality as a key barrier to women’s economic equality. (ilostat.ilo.org) The same pattern shows up in care protections. An International Labour Organization and Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing policy brief said only 41% of mothers with newborns receive a maternity benefit worldwide, and close to 1 billion women working in the informal economy have little or no maternity protection. (ilo.org) Construction magnifies those gaps because jobs are temporary, subcontracted, and often arranged through labor intermediaries instead of direct hiring. The International Labour Organization says outsourcing and subcontracting are common features of the industry, which makes accountability for wages, safety gear, and benefits harder to trace. (ilo.org) The 2025 ILO report’s recommendations were practical rather than symbolic: more training pipelines, safer worksites, clean toilets, crèches, and protective equipment designed for women. The dispute over who gets called “unskilled” now sits next to a more concrete question — who gets counted, paid, and protected as a worker. (ilo.org)
