The political economy of Palestinian women’s labour market participation

Abstract

Palestinian women’s formal labour market participation has been an intriguing phenomenon, mainly due to its striking features. These include: one of the lowest female labour force participation rates in the world, yet a highly fluctuating one. This is particularly odd in light of the fact that Palestinian women have high educational rates. By 2000, Palestinian girls had higher school enrolments rates and lower dropout rates than boys. Girls’ primary and secondary school enrolment ratios are also higher than boys within the entire MENA region (UNESCO, 2009). At the same time, Palestinian society is not as conservative as other neighbouring countries (including Saudi Arabia), yet female labour force participation rates are lower amongst Palestinian women. Given this context, the chapter will consider the supply and demand determinants of female labour market participation in order to provide a better understanding of the reasons behind the low participation rates of Palestinian women. In terms of organisation, this chapter starts by providing a brief literature review of the determinants of participation in the labour market. Section 3 then moves to examine the characteristics of women’s participation and employment in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). The chapter then focuses on the political, economic and social barriers facing women in the labour market