The South African labour market is more favourable to men than women, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic hit. According to Statistics South Africa (August 2021), the participation rate of men in the labour market is always higher than that of women.
Men have more employment opportunities in the formal sector, while women tend to be employed in the informal sector. Furthermore, men are more likely to be in paid employment than women, regardless of race. Women and children are the centre of these inequalities, and their vulnerability calls for government and civil society intervention.
