Towards Gender Equality in The Cambodian Labor Market – Gender Gaps Prevent Females from Stable Income Generation

Abstract

Cambodia has enjoyed a decade of macroeconomic stability and growth and is increasingly integrating with the region. Nevertheless, a few topics remain challenging as Cambodia strives for middle-income status by 2030. One of these is gender disparity in the labor market. While Cambodia has one of the highest female labor market participation rates in Asia, most women still face horizontal and vertical gender inequality. Such gender disparities in the labor market negatively affect the macroeconomic efficiencies of developing countries as well as stable income generation of females. As the social development of modern civilizations is based highly on gender equality, gender stereotypes are likely to prevent Cambodia from transforming into a society of equal opportunity. While a previous World Bank quantitative research report provided statistical insights into gender-related inequality in Cambodia (Gavalyugova & Cunningham 2019), many constraints underlying gender inequality in the labor market remained largely unclear. In order to develop new programs concentrating on increasing female involvement in the labor market, it is necessary to investigate the problems and challenges women face when entering the labor market in Cambodia. To contribute to filling this knowledge gap, this study collected and analyzed qualitative data. Qualitative focus group discussions and key informant interviews were held to gain a deeper understanding of mechanisms underlying gender disparities in the Cambodian labor market.