PCBS: Women one-fifth of Palestinian workforce

Men\'s participation in the labor force is four times higher than women\'s in the West Bank and Gaza, the Central Bureau of Statistics said Monday. At 19 percent, women\'s workforce participation is slightly higher in the West Bank than in Gaza where it stands at 12 percent, according to the survey released to mark Labor Day. Women are also paid less than men. In 2011, the average daily wage was 60 shekels ($15.91) for women but 71 shekels ($18.82) for men. Palestinians in Gaza earned an average daily wage of 47 shekels ($12.46) compared with 78 shekels ($20.68) in the West Bank. Unemployment figures also showed a stark divide between Gaza and the West Bank. In the Gaza Strip, 29 percent of residents were jobless in 2011 compared with 17 percent in the West Bank. In Gaza, the public sector was the main employer in 2011, providing 54 percent of jobs. In the West Bank, 21 percent of the workforce was employed in Israel and Israeli settlements. Some 12,000 Palestinians were working in illegal Israeli settlements while 69,000 worked in Israel, PCBS reported. The most lucrative positions were service industry jobs in the private sector, providing an average daily wage of 102 shekels ($27.04) in the West Bank and 85 shekels ($22.54) in Gaza. Agricultural workers earned the lowest wages, around 58 shekels ($15.38) daily in the West Bank and 29 shekels ($7.69) in Gaza. Meanwhile only around a quarter of salaried employees receive retirement or end of service benefits, annual leave or paid sick leave. Less than a fifth of waged employees are affiliated to unions.