Rising Employment, Unequal Pay: Telangana’s Women Workers Speak

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Women’s participation in the workforce in Telangana has shown a steady and encouraging rise in recent years. However, this progress continues to be overshadowed by deep-rooted wage inequality, especially in the informal sector, as reflected in official data and ground-level interactions with women workers across the state.

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023–24, female labour force participation has gained clear momentum. Urban female labour force participation rate (LFPR) stands at approximately 50–51 per cent, while rural participation remains significantly lower at 25–26 per cent. The women’s workforce participation rate (WPR) has nearly doubled over the last seven years—from 22 per cent in 2017 to 40.3 per cent in 2024. Overall LFPR during the period July 2023 to June 2024 was recorded at nearly 60 per cent, highlighting a broader shift toward increased economic engagement.

Despite this quantitative rise, wage parity remains elusive. Multiple studies and sector-wise data indicate that women workers in Hyderabad earn 30 to 40 per cent less than their male counterparts on average. In sectors such as retail and manufacturing, the wage gap ranges between 15 and 17 per cent, while in the IT sector it fluctuates between 10 and 17 per cent. Although the disparity is relatively lower in healthcare and pharmaceuticals—around 10 per cent—it remains persistent. Agriculture continues to record the highest wage gap, reflecting entrenched gender inequalities in traditional occupations.

Data from TeamLease Digital and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) reveal that women often earn only 60 to 70 per cent of male wages. Experts attribute this to women’s over-representation in lower-paying roles, limited access to leadership positions, and frequent mid-career dropouts due to work–family pressures and lack of institutional support.

The situation is even more concerning in the informal sector, where regulation and enforcement are weak. Women workers here reportedly earn 20 to 60 per cent less than men for similar work, despite working long hours under strenuous conditions. Many earn as little as ₹5,000 per month—far below Telangana’s minimum wage benchmark of ₹12,000.

Savita Devi, a garment factory worker from Nacharam Chilaka Nagar, shared her experience:

“I come early every day and work till evening. There are around 3,000 women workers here. Men doing the same work earn about ₹14,000, but women are paid only ₹9,500. After factory work, we also have household responsibilities, but nothing changes.”

Echoing her concerns, Arjun, a local factory worker, said,

“Women operate the same machines and work as hard as men, but they are always paid less, even when they work long hours.”

Repeated attempts to seek a response from officials of the Hyderabad Labour Department regarding wage disparities and enforcement of minimum wage norms did not receive any reply, raising questions about monitoring mechanisms and accountability.

While Telangana’s rising female workforce participation signals social and economic progress, the persistent wage gap underscores a troubling reality. Employment alone does not guarantee empowerment. Without strict enforcement of labour laws, transparent wage structures, and gender-sensitive workplace policies, women’s growing presence in the workforce risks becoming a statistic devoid of true equality. Bridging the gap between participation and fair pay remains an urgent challenge for policymakers, employers, and society at large.