Unemployment rate among Indian women more than double of men: study
New Delhi: The unemployment rate among women in India is more than double of that of men with similar qualifications, a new study has revealed.
Titled "Gender Inclusion in Hiring in India", the study by two Harvard students, Rachel Levenson and Layla O'Kane, noted that 8.7 per cent of working-age urban, educated women in the country are unemployed but only 4 percent of comparable men find themselves without a job.
"While there are many factors that influence a woman's decision and ability to find work, the gender gap in the unemployment rate along with ILO (International Labour Organisation) research suggest that women, particularly highly-educated ones, face additional barriers as compared to men in accessing jobs," it said.
Levenson and O'Kane's analysis is based on close to 200 India-based jobs for which Shortlist, a hiring firm in India, had provided the recruiting platform between 2016 and 2017. It included 286,991 applications from 211,004 applicants (some people applied to multiple jobs).
According to the study, while discrimination based on gender is illegal under the Indian constitution, conversations with hiring managers and other labour market experts have revealed that there is gender discrimination in the hiring process across the country, as is the case around the world.
The study looks at three stages at which women may face barriers during hiring -- qualifications and experience, recruitment and choice to apply, and application process, while suggesting tools to increase gender diversity in the Indian workforce.
It highlighted the need for gender inclusive work places by correlating it with "higher levels of performance and innovation".
"Inclusive hiring improves firm-level growth by allowing companies to attract and retain top talent and better serving consumers in markets or sectors where women are a key customer segment," it said.
The study also noted that increasing female participation in the labour force could increase the Indian GDP by 27 per cent.
Not dismissing the progress, albeit little, that several multinational corporations in the country have made towards minimising gender discrimination at work place over the past couple of decades, it highlighted the role technology could play in improving hiring outcomes including increasing the number of women who apply and get shortlisted for jobs.
"We know that diverse teams perform better, and we're encouraged by these results because they show that even small and medium sized businesses, and not just large enterprises, can leverage technology to increase the diversity of their candidate pools," said Simon Desjardins, Co-founder of Shortlist.
The study suggested competency-based assessments, behavioral nudges in recruitment, and well-designed job descriptions, for creating a more effective bias-reducing, gender-sensitive hiring process in India.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
