3.4. Paid Work

Women also work for wages in fields, forests, mines, factories, offices, small-scale and household industries. The nature and extent of such work differs according to the location of family in the social hierarchy. In the rural sector the subsistence work burden falls heavily on women, while in higher castes and higher income groups ‘non-work’ of women is given more value. Many micro studies have reported inverse relationship between income level of the household and nature of women’s work participation. Women in the subsistence sector have no option but to work. However, their options are limited as they are non-entrants or drop-outs

from school. They are often the primary breadwinners of the family, but the ideological bias views men as the primary breadwinner of the family.