Title: Gender discrimination in the construction industry of Bangladesh

Authors: Ishrat Parveen, Soma Dey

Addresses: Department of Women and Gender Studies, University of Dhaka, Dhaka – 1000, Bangladesh. ' Department of Women and Gender Studies, University of Dhaka, Dhaka – 1000, Bangladesh

Abstract: The construction industry in Bangladesh exhibits gender biases in many respects and for many reasons. Construction work requires physically strong labourers and that is why it is referred to as masculine work. Women construction workers are considered |weak labour| in this sector. They are also regarded as unskilled, cheap, available and flexible labour. As a result of these gender stereotypes, women workers in Bangladesh|s construction industry are appointed to do simple tasks requiring the least skill, and in addition, as this sector does not offer them equal career opportunities, they also receive unequal pay.

Keywords: construction industry; gender discrimination; wage gap; urbanisation; masculine work; feminine work; Bangladesh; gender pay gap; gender bias; women; gender stereotypes; female workers; career opportunities; inequality.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGE.2009.030996

International Journal of Green Economics, 2009 Vol.3 No.2, pp.223 - 233

Published online: 16 Jan 2010 *

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