TEPAV: Non-Agricultural Female Workers Reaches 4.8M in Turkey

Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV) has released a bulletin on June 16, saying that female employment has increased. 

“The speed of paid women workers has increased, the gap between man and women is slowly closing,” TEPAV’s Employment Monitoring Bulletin cited on its 18th issues departing from the economic values of February 2013. 

The bulletin underlined that a series of incentives, projects and protocols initiated by government policies from 2005 has finally given its products with an increase on female employment. 

The number of non-agricultural female workers rose from 3.2 million in February 2008 to 4.8 million in February 2013. In other words, the number of female workers in non-agricultural sectors rose almost by 50 percent with roughly 1.5 million women in the workforce. 

Currently, this trend aligned with the government’s goal for 2023 - to increase the number of female workers to 38 percent of Turkey’s workforce with 1 percent rise every year. Now, women join the workforce by 31 percent. 

Especially, the report also allowed to observe the socio-economic changes in the society considering that female employment gained a rising trend by 2008. 

“Increasing female employment is one of the indispensable goals towards the sustainable growth of Turkey’s economy. Even though the results do not seem satisfying compared to European countries, they are promising for those who determine and implement these policies. The competition is still existent but at least an equality has been established among countries who race each other in the economic arena. The dark environment of 1980s in terms of female employment is gradually transitioning into today’s more optimistic  rates with projects and programs in the direction of capital demands,” the report said. 

It also said that Turkey’s profile on UN and OECD female employment list is also showing signs of improvement. “Some newspaper headlines,” the report continued, “are likely to change: Female employment in Turkey fails again, 3 of every 4 women are sitting at home.” 

The social role of women is changing 

Within the research on increasing female employment, traditional values also emerged as a challenging factor for the officials. Capital incentive policies are being implemented without considering women’s position in the household, the report said. 

That being said, the report underlined a project announced in March by Fatma Şahin - Turkey’s Family and Social Policies Minister. The project aims to make women’s professional role flexible while maintaining their role as “mother and wife” in the household. 

While women are poised to take a step towards labor force, some of the details that revealed on the surface are as follows: 

* Following the global economic depression in 2008, women are also joining the workforce to minimize the impoverishment effect of the depression. 

* Economic depression and competitive working conditions compelled the capital holders to lean towards low-cost, flexible, less protected and more controllable workforce groups such as women. 

* The distribution of female workers according to TEPAV report. According to Turkey’s social security institution (SGK) out of 306,000 newly-hired female workers, 48,000 work in the education sector, 26,000 work in the health sector, 21,000 work in the food-drink sector, and 20,000 work in the clothing sector. Other 19,000 work in the manufacture sector and 18,000 work in office sector. Out of 306,000 newly-hired workers between February 2012 and 2013, 74,000 women work in the production industry. In the meanwhile, new female workers were hired in the following sectors: Clothing industry (20,000), Food industry (12,000) and textile (11,000). The rise in those three sectors turned out 61 percent. 

* As an effect of government policies, women find most jobs in the service sector, especially in trade, education and health. Women’s work needs align with the flexible working conditions of education and health sectors. It is also important to note that the increase rate of female workers without contract is still above the increase rate of women  with a contract. 

* Woman who was traditionally regarded as “ “unpaid family worker” or “housewife who doesn’t contribute to workforce” is slowly being regarded as “workforce”. 

* The participation of women into workforce can also be considered as a step towards their liberation from traditional moral values that keep them at home. (NG/HK/BM)