By: Natasha Archary
Are there occupations where more women are trying to move into? If yes, what are those?
Paul Byrne, Head of Data Insights & Customer Success at Pnet joins Gugulethu Mfuphi on Kaya Biz to share insight from a report which examined male vs female job applications over the past 3 years.
South Africa’s labour market has seen significant changes over the years, with more women entering various industries that were once male-dominated.
However, disparities in employment rates, wage gaps, and job types persist.
According to Statistics South Africa, women still face higher unemployment rates than men and are often underrepresented in senior and technical roles. This underrepresentation begins at the application stage, where differences in how men and women apply for jobs become evident.
“In this particular report of ours, we looked at gender from data taken out of the Pnet job market trends report with the aim to see a change in dynamic regarding how women are changing their careers.
Specifically, we wanted to see if there was a trend of women starting to move into what we previously used to call ‘male dominated’ professions.
What we’ve learned from the in-depth analysis on female vs male job applications over the last 3 years reveals the top 10 occupations with a significant uptake of female applicants in previously male dominated jobs.”
Research indicates that women are generally more cautious than men when applying for jobs. Women tend to apply only when they meet 100% of the job requirements, whereas men are more likely to apply if they meet around 60% of the qualifications.
This difference can be attributed to varying levels of confidence and risk-taking behavior, where men may feel more comfortable pursuing opportunities for which they are not fully qualified.
Listen to the conversation on Kaya Biz:
Also read: The difference between setting boundaries and losing interest in relationships
