ABSTRACT
Women make up a growing percentage of the global labour force but are concentrated in the informal end of the labour market where working conditions are least secure. It explores these changing trends in the labour force and their implications for labour market vulnerability in greater detail. The chapter examines some recent data on patterns of labour force participation in developing countries. The analysis shows that the 'geography of gender' identified by Boserup is still discernible in current regional patterns in female labour force participation rates, though in a modified form. Informal work can be broadly categorised into two groups: A number of general points can be made on the basis of the discussion in this chapter. The argument for a gendered approach to social protection measures for informal workers thus rests, in the first instance, on the documented increase in women's labour force participation and their concentration in the informal end of the labour market.
