Female Labour Force Participation and Economic Growth in India: Trends, Determinants and the Growth Potential of Women’s Employment

Abstract

Female labour force participation is becoming more acknowledge as a critical component of inclusive economic development in India. Despite swift economic expansion, improvements in female education and demographic transition, women's participation in the labour market has historically remained considerably below that of men. Using secondary data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), the World Bank and International Labour Organization (ILO), the study analyses developments in female labour force participation, worker population ratio, unemployment and economic growth. The PLFS data show a substantial increase in the female labour force participation rate from 23.3 percent in 2017–18 to 41.7 percent in 2023–24. However, a large gender gap remains, particularly in urban employment. The latest monthly PLFS evidence also indicates that female LFPR stood at 34.4 percent in July 2026 when using Current Weekly Status measure, shows the importance of distinguishing between statistical concepts and reference periods. The paper argues that women's participation is constrained not merely by education or household income but by the availability of suitable jobs, unpaid care responsibilities, social norms, occupational segregation, safety and mobility constraints, skill mismatches and the structure of economic transformation. The study shows that increasing women's participation in productive and remunerative employment could substantially enlarge India's effective labour supply, improve household well -being  , increase productivity and support the country's long-term high-growth ambitions.