Achieving gender equality through the social and solidarity economy

In many OECD countries and beyond, women often make up more than 60% of the social economy workforce. What can we learn from the social economy to advance gender equality at large?

This project is developed by the OECD Global Action "Promoting Social and Solidarity Economy Ecosystems”, funded by the European Union.

What's the issue?

In many OECD countries and beyond, women often make up more than 60% of the workforce in the social economy, and gaps in leadership and pay have been reported lower. The social economy is an important driver of job creation and economic activity with social impact. The field also offers opportunities to transition from informal to formal employment including for women.

Social economy organisations (associations, cooperatives, mutual organisations, foundations and social enterprises) prioritise people over profit and embody values such as solidarity, inclusivity, equality and democratic governance. What can we learn from the social economy to advance gender equality in economies at large?

This project is being conducted in the framework of OECD Global Action “Promoting Social and Solidarity Economy Ecosystems” with funding from the European Union.

Webinar | Advancing gender equality through the social economy | 24 March 2022

Recent publications

Published 20 March 2023

EU funded by horizontal logo

Beyond pink-collar jobs for women and the social economy

Building on many data sources and country examples on women’s employment in the social and solidarity economy (SSE) this report:

Analyses women’s employment in the SSE,
Explores challenges to gender equality in the SSE and,
Provides policy recommendations to recognise women’s work and leadership in the SSE and in the wider economy.

It also suggests ways to foster their participation in high-growth sectors within the SSE, such as technology-intensive and green sectors.

Read the report

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Blog posts and podcasts

what do you see? by Yasmin Morais

OECD · Pink collar jobs: new shades for the social economy

About the OECD Social Economy and Innovation Unit

The OECD began work on social entrepreneurship over 25 years ago. The OECD assists national, regional and local governments in designing and implementing strategies to support the SSE and social enterprises by providing them with tailored and evidence-based policy recommendations. The work supports the OECD’s Local Employment and Economic Development (LEED) Programme.

If you are interested to learn more about the project or to get involved:

[email protected]

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Global Action: Promoting Social and Solidarity Economy Ecosystems