By Yenuli Ranaweera and Rojie Ekanayake
Yenuli Ranaweera is a Research Assistant and Rojie Ekanayake is a Programme and Research Officer at Arutha. Arutha is a Colombo-based policy think tank focused on economic research and communication with a special interest in public debt and taxation. Its economic civic education initiative, Default LK, was established during Sri Lanka’s first-ever sovereign default in 2022
Are new laws the answer?
Sri Lanka ranks 20th in terms of the world’s largest gender gap in labour force participation.
In a previous article, we discussed how unpaid care work is a contributor to low Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP). The article highlighted the importance of valuing the unpaid care work done by women and how it holds together society and the economy as we know it. This is not to say, however, that diligent and active steps should not be taken to encourage increased participation of women in the labour force.
Studies show that on average, given the choice, women across the world would like to engage in paid work. Removing barriers for women to participate in the workforce supports their freedom to choose.
There are benefits of this beyond simply growing the workforce. It would allow more women to gain financial independence and access social security, which would give women greater autonomy and safety as well as the ability to provide for their dependents.
The reasons why women are less likely to work in paid formal jobs are varied and complex. In recent months, the Sri Lankan Government has taken steps to introduce legislation which, if implemented, could help reduce such barriers.
Laws, policies and latest developments
Sri Lanka has several new pieces of legislation that have been introduced to tackle low FLFP. The Economic Transformation Act passed in Parliament recently sets out several targets the country must achieve in the coming years. One such target is to increase FLFP to 40% by 2030 and to 50% by 2040. However, it does not mention a clear pathway to achieve this target. Instead, there appear to be other legal measures attempting to support women in entering the workforce introduced in tandem.
The existing legislation, such as the Shop and Office Employees Act and the Maternity Benefits Ordinance, has many shortcomings. This includes failure to provide benefits to casual workers under the Maternity Benefits Ordinance, the absence of provisions for paternity leave except three days for Government employees, and lack of updated laws regarding part-time and nighttime work.
Further, currently there are no laws in place that protect employees from sexual harassment in the workplace. The recent International Monetary Fund (IMF) review notes that the Government plans to unveil a new Employment Act that unifies and updates existing legislation. While details are still unknown, the Ministry of Foreign Employment and Labour has provided key points of the proposed act. For instance, the new legislation seeks to introduce legal provision to prevent discrimination and all forms of harassment and sexual violence in the workplace.
Importance is given to inclusion of domestic work, largely undertaken by women and uncaptured in formal labour market statistics, under the purview of the labour law. The act also sets out to provide legal provisions for paternity leave, which could be a step in reducing the care work burden that falls primarily on women.
Two other measures mentioned in this review are the acts on gender equality and women empowerment which are meant to compliment the Employment Act. At present, the Women Empowerment Bill has been passed with amendments while the Supreme Court observed that the Gender Equality Bill is inconsistent with the Constitution.
These initiatives mainly focus on establishing an institutional setup to uphold the existing rights of women such as anti-discrimination and freedom from violence. The Women Empowerment Act states that it will facilitate the creation and implementation of a national policy to advance and empower women by setting up a commission and ombuds to uphold women’s rights. Given that the specifics on this policy are yet to be unveiled, the impact on FLFP is not clear.
The Gender Equality Bill aims to introduce a new national policy on gender equality and women’s empowerment. While the policy presented in 2023 speaks of women’s economic empowerment, including recognition of informal and care work, the actual implementation is primarily limited to preventing discrimination and protecting worker rights.
The bills also propose gender focal points in public and private sectors for monitoring and reporting. However, the recent Supreme Court ruling on the bill casts doubt on the feasibility of these measures in the near future.
Going beyond legislation
Not all issues related to low FLFP can be fixed through legislation. Most barriers for women in the labour force require changes to policy and policy implementation. One such barrier is the disproportionate burden of care work on women.
The Government and private sector employers should provide access to better childcare and elder care facilities to reduce the care work burden. This is however not a panacea and there will be those who are unable to access these facilities due to socioeconomic constraints.
This is why opportunities for home-based income generation and access to part-time work or flexible work hours is vital. Creating a more consistent school year and lengthening the school day could provide women with school-aged children more opportunities to seek employment.
Safe transport is a major concern for women undertaking paid work but needs to be seen through an intersectional lens. Many women who use public transport are constantly subjected to harassment, which can deter them from taking up employment opportunities.
Harassment on public transport disproportionately affects women from lower income groups as they may not have the option to switch to private transport. Therefore, it is crucial to take measures to increase safety in public transport and strictly enforce legislation to reduce often overlooked harassment.
For instance, increasing capacity in the current transport system could reduce overcrowding and the public must be encouraged to intervene if they witness any form of harassment. Involving more women in transport planning could also help bring attention to current shortcomings of the system.
Facilitating lasting change
While encouraging women to participate in the labour force, it is also essential to empower girls from an early age and provide them with options and opportunities to be ready to face the world in the future. It is important to encourage and support girls from an early age to explore a range of career possibilities and education avenues or skill-building that prepare them for various demands.
Providing vocational training, financial literacy, business development training, and links to markets would help young girls to equip themselves with attributes that employers look for. It would also help young school leavers to find employment easily or even start entrepreneurial ventures.
When taken as a whole, these new legal measures do have the potential to empower women economically. However, there is much more to be done beyond enforcing the legal rights of women to be free from discrimination and harassment to improve FLFP in Sri Lanka.
Moreover, it’s no secret that national policies have existed on paper throughout the country’s history. The real challenge is in ensuring these institutions and documents are not mere tokens in a box ticking exercise. Increasing FLFP therefore is not something that can be achieved overnight without a clear and consistent action plan. We must look beyond the legislation if we are to bring about substantial changes for women and girls in the world of work, education, and society.
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