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Geneva - Women may be represented in the workplace like never before, but they are still more vulnerable than men to unemployment and low-paying jobs, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said on Friday.
In a report presented one day before International Women's Day on March 8, the ILO said women are more likely to be stuck in low productivity jobs that are poorly paid and precarious.
In 2007, the rate of female labour activity reached 52.5% against 78.8% for men, the ILO said.
Unemployment stood at 6.4% for women and 5.7% for men.
The activity rate figure was down slightly from 52.9% recorded in 1997, which the ILO ascribed to higher female participation in education.
Not enough
"More women have access to education and are entering the labour market later," said Dorothea Schmidt, one of the report's authors.
However, female labour is not sufficient in itself to pull communities out of poverty, the ILO added.
Women in sub-Saharan Africa have the highest labour activity rate worldwide at 62.6%, but poverty remains widespread, the report found.
"This shows a severe dysfunction of the labour market in the region," the ILO said.
"Decent work remains without a doubt the exception rather than the rule," it warned.
- AFP