Investment in care services can generate 234 million jobs for women by 2035

Context: Recently, International Labour Organization (ILO) has published a report titled ‘Care at work: Investing in care leave and services for a more gender-equal world of work’.

Key Findings

• Investing in universal childcare and long-term care services can generate up to 299 million jobs by 2035.
• Of these, nearly 78 % will go to women.

According to the report, employment rates of women will rise by 10 percentage points overall, ranging from nine percentage points in Europe and lower-middle and low-income countries in Asia to 12 percentage points in the Arab states, far more than for men.

• This job creation potential by 2035 will be driven by 96 million direct jobs in childcare, 136 million direct jobs in long-term care and 67 million indirect jobs in non-care sectors and for that, an annual investment of $5.4 trillion will be required.

Persistent and significant gaps in care services and policies have left hundreds of millions of workers with family responsibilities without adequate protection and support.
Globally, only 89 out of 179 countries have a statutory provision of public long-term care services for older persons.

• It will take at least 46 years to achieve minimum maternity leave rights.

It called for action to invest in a transformative package of care policies including:

• Building knowledge, data and awareness.
• Designing and implementing care policies and services.
• Costing care policies and services.
• Strengthening representation and social dialogues.

Closing these large policy gaps would require a annual investment of US$4.4 trillion.
International Labour Organization (ILO)

• It is the United Nations’ first and oldest agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice through setting international labour standards.
• It was founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations.
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
• It has 187 member states: 186 out of 193 UN member states plus the Cook Islands.
• India is the founding member of ILO.

ILO’s convention

• There are eight Core Conventions of the ILO (also called fundamental/human rights conventions).

India has not ratified convention no. 87 and 98 i.e.

• Freedom of Association and Protection of Right to Organised Convention (No.87)
• Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention (No.98)