The Iranian centrist newspaper, Ham Mihan, has highlighted the issue of women’s employment in a recent report. Despite Iran having one of the highest numbers of female university students and graduates in the region, their participation in the labor market and economy remains lower than in most neighboring countries.
The core issue revolves around women’s economic power: the amount of money they possess and their control over finances. Recent studies reveal that women generally face greater financial hardship, experiencing discrimination within families and lower workplace rankings compared to men. Employers often view women’s work as a luxury and compensate them less. At home, women do not share in their husband’s income and are often excluded from financial decisions.
Research indicates that women’s share of employment is very low, and they are rarely found in senior management positions. Furthermore, restrictive laws, such as those governing inheritance and dowry, exacerbate their economic marginalization. These issues were discussed at the “Wallet and Gender” seminar ın Tehran, the first in a series on gender and inequality by the Rahman Institute. The seminar featured prominent sociologists and economists who have extensively studied gender inequality.
A sociologist who has previously held a strategic planning position at the Tehran Municipality, discussed the results of a comprehensive three-year research project: “When we started this topic, we realized how complex it is and how many dimensions it has. This project took three years. In this research, three aspects were examined, the first being the law; the impact of law on women’s economy.”
She emphasized: “Macro statistics show that women in Iran are very poor, with their share of formal employment at about 12.8 to 14 percent, and their land ownership percentage very low. They do not have a significant presence in senior management or economic leadership roles. Even compared to countries in the region, the employment status of women in Iran is poor, and this cannot be accidental.”
Women in employment and economic management
This researcher considers male resistance to women’s economic roles a deep crisis and explains: “These individuals include family men, society, and even policymakers. After gaining financial independence and earning an income, women often criticize their husbands and the way they manage the family. Studies also show that organizations and community associations, acting as intermediaries and a form of social support, generally exclude middle-class women from their support. Despite facing significant economic challenges, these women are economically disadvantaged within their families and lack economic skills. This situation is exemplified by the formal employment rate for women, indicating that nearly 80 percent of women in the country are considered homemakers. These NGOs focus on immediate economic crises rather than long-term interventions and have defined their role as supporting the very low-income lower class, effectively excluding middle-class women.”
According to this researcher, another issue is that these organizations lack effective collaboration and participation: “In Tehran, we interviewed 27 NGOs and found that while each one undertakes effective individual actions, there is no network among them. As a result, there is no synergistic force and no cohesive advocacy. Therefore, despite all the efforts and hard work, there is significant weakness in advocacy as well.”
Regarding the impact of law on women’s employment, she added: “We examined what women receive and give according to the law. For example, what dowry gives and takes from them, or what inheritance law provides. Compiling all the relevant laws was astonishing. We concluded that civil law, in particular, is an economic barrier for women.”
The second aspect of their research explored the lived economic experiences of women in Tehran, focusing on women from various socio-economic backgrounds. This involved in-depth interviews and participatory observation: “We selected these women based on their geographical location, income level, and ownership status, conducted in-depth interviews about their lived experiences, and engaged in participatory observation with these women. In the third aspect of this research, we explored the experiences of interventionists, namely NGOs focusing on the economic intervention of lower-class women, and obtained good information from them. We also talked to policymakers, people working in senior management in women’s affairs.”
Collecting data on women’s lived economic experiences took about a year, with some interruptions due to events in 2022. The research culminated in a Delphi questionnaire to propose a policy package for improving women’s economic situation.
Powerless owners
The research revealed several key findings, including overt and hidden violence against women, cultural elements affecting women’s economic strategies, and their motivations for earning income. For example, women in middle and upper economic classes do not have their own money, and men control the family finances. Women often have to resort to strategies like hiding money, converting money into goods, family savings funds, and cheap labor to become wealthy. They might also threaten men with divorce or refuse to do housework as a form of leverage.
A sociologist and researcher on women and gender highlighted the pressures faced by men in the current situation: “The gender structure impacts men as well, who are always seen as the breadwinners. Regardless of a woman’s financial situation, the man is viewed as the provider, and the household’s assets are considered his. If the woman is the head of the household, she makes the economic decisions, especially if the man is absent due to issues like imprisonment or addiction.”
She explained that society’s behavior towards women mirrors that of the family, with employers viewing women’s work as non-essential: “Employers and society often consider women’s work as a luxury, assuming they do not need the money. This perception leads to financial supervision over women’s expenses but not over men’s. The unequal access to financial resources within the family creates gender-based violence and secrecy.”
An economist and the Secretary of the Women Entrepreneurs Association discussed the challenges women face in entrepreneurship: “The market’s language is predominantly male. Women face significant economic violence and are often excluded from technical and engineering fields despite being highly qualified. Cultural issues also play a major role in preventing women from advancing in the job market.”
She added: “It’s good to have theoretical discussions, but we must not forget that on the other side, there is a male society that, whether we like it or not, we need to teach our daughters to understand. Two years ago, at the Academy of Sciences, there was a council discussing why girls cannot enter the technical and engineering work field. We saw that the reality in the children’s minds about the job market was based on what they had seen in their families from their fathers and brothers.”
Structural and systematic exclusion of women from the market
During the seminar’s Q&A session, speakers provided additional insights. One sociologist argued that when women decide to challenge conventional roles, they face significant societal pushback. Another speaker critiqued the systematic exclusion of women from the market, emphasizing the need for intelligent strategies to combat this exclusion.
When women decide to step beyond the conventional boundaries of being a woman, they should expect certain reactions: “Society has a specific vision and mission for women. Often, this vision and mission defined by the family are not acceptable to the woman herself. This can create a conflict between working women and non-working women. A working woman might feel she is not fulfilling her role as a woman, but when she realizes she is, she can implement feminine management in the workplace. This is where she clashes with the gender structure. Many might not like this new kind of woman.”
One of the panelists, in response to a question, said: “The issue is that the structure systematically excludes women from the market and prevents them from entering. There are benefits allocated and distributed in the economic system in which women have a share. Inheritance law continuously and increasingly marginalizes women. When they were selecting a mayor for Tehran, not a single woman was a candidate. When we protested and asked why a woman wasn’t chosen for the mayoral position, they told us that no woman was in a position to be mayor. I don’t accept this, but even if it’s true, it is the result of years of exclusion. There are benefits and powers at stake, and some people are standing firm on these benefits.”
She continued: “In any economic field you enter, you first have to say that you are a woman and then say that you understand economics. This struggle is very difficult.”
The debate concluded with a call for women to build supportive communities and advocate for incremental changes within the existing structures to improve their economic position.
Global ranking
The latest report on the gender gap for 2023 has been released, ranking countries worldwide. The bottom five countries are Pakistan at rank 142, Iran at rank 143, Algeria at rank 144, Chad at rank 145, and Afghanistan at rank 146. The top nine countries, which have closed at least 80 percent of the gender gap, are Iceland, Norway, Finland, New Zealand, Sweden, Germany, Nicaragua, Namibia, and Lithuania. It is projected that achieving full gender equality will take 131 years.
This year marks the 17th edition of the Global Gender Gap Index, measuring gender equality in 146 countries and providing a robust basis for cross-country analysis. Additionally, an examination of a subset of 102 countries included in each edition since 2006 offers a consistent sample for time series analysis. The Global Gender Gap Index scores on a scale from 0 to 100, representing the percentage of the gender gap that has been closed. Cross-country comparisons highlight the most effective policies for reducing gender gaps.
Key findings of this report include the 2023 index results, trend analysis on the path towards equality, and an in-depth examination of data through new metrics and contextual insights.
What you think?