How employment diversification affects labour competitiveness: A gender perspective
Manxue Chen, Yanting Ma, Tianze Liu, Haote Xing
Keywords:
Informal employment, labour supply decision, gender difference, family influence
factors; labour competitiveness
Abstract:
As China’s population continues ageing, and the birth rate continues decreasing, the
demographic dividend that the nation once had is gradually fading. Meanwhile, information
technology is rapidly developing, and new forms of employment continue emerging, facilitating
the diversification of China’s traditional employment forms. This study investigates how the
diversified employment environment affects labour competitiveness in China from the specific
perspective of gender difference. From a theoretical standpoint, we examine the mechanism of
informal employment on men’s and women’s employment decisions and labour market
competitiveness. We then construct a multi-value labour supply decision model and a nonlinear
employment difference decomposition model to identify the key factors that affect individuals’
employment decisions, assessing those factors in terms of gender differences. We use microdata
from the China Family Panel Studies, finding that women’s labour competitiveness is
lower than that of men. Family factors have a significant influence on women’s decisions
regarding labour market participation, informal employment provides more options for women
to balance occupational life and homecare, and severe gender discrimination and inequality are
the primary obstacle to women’s entering the informal employment sector. In analysing these
impacts, we seek to provide insights regarding how to elevate women’s competitiveness in the
labour market, particularly in the informal employment sector.
Fulltext download:
 How employment diversification affects labour competitiveness: A gender perspective [PDF file] [Filesize: 349.94 KB]
 10.7441/joc.2023.02.04
Chen, M., Ma, Y., Liu T. & Xing, H. (2023). How employment diversification affects labour competitiveness: A gender
perspective. Journal of Competitiveness, 15(2), 54-71. https://doi.org/10.7441/joc.2023.02.04
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