Slowdown & Covid hit labour market but pay gap narrowing: Azim Premji University report

NEW DELHI: The economic slowdown of 2018-2020 and the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 have adversely impacted India’s labour market, skewing the workforce towards self-employment and disproportionately affecting women, according to a report by the Azim Premji University.

According to the ‘State of Working India 2023’ report, gender-based earnings disparities have narrowed in India since 2017 with salaried women workers now earning 76% of what their male counterparts earn, up from 70% in 2004.

The report, released Wednesday, is based on evidence from official data and the Indian Working Survey, a primary survey conducted by the university in collaboration with Initiative for What Works to Advance Women and Girls in the Economy and IIMBangalore.


“India has significantly expanded the share of workers with regular wages, narrowed caste-based segregation and reduced genderbased disparities in the workforce from the 1980s while challenges remain,” said the report.