Official statistics contradict claims by Iranian officials, revealing a significant increase in the unemployment rate of women aged 15-24 during winter 2023 compared to the previous year. Lorestan province, for instance, saw a staggering 218% rise, reaching an alarming 86.2% unemployment within this age group.
In late 2023, the Iranian Statistics Center reported a 27.8% unemployment rate for women and a 13% rate for men in 2022, highlighting the stark gender disparity in the Iranian workforce.
The Eco Iran website further analyzed this crisis, attributing it to a key factor in the increased migration of young Iranian women. Their report found that 36.4% of women seeking work in this age group remained unemployed, compared to only 19.5% of men in the same situation last winter.
Beyond Lorestan, Fars and Golestan provinces followed with unemployment rates of 63.1% and 63% respectively, indicating that over half of young female jobseekers remain unemployed in these regions. Kerman, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, and Ardabil provinces also face significant unemployment challenges, ranking fourth to seventh with rates exceeding 50%.
Conversely, provinces like Qazvin, West Azarbaijan, Ilam, and Bushehr show a relatively better situation, where less than 20% of young women are unemployed.
Data on university graduates reveals a concerning trend: twice as many educated women are unemployed compared to men. Overall, 40% of Iranian university graduates are jobless, with women comprising 71% and men exceeding 27%.
Donay-e Eghtesad newspaper, citing Iranian Statistics Center data, reported a national unemployment rate of 8.6% in winter 2023, with the male rate at 7.1% and the female rate at a staggering 15.6%, more than double the male rate.
These statistics, coupled with the intensifying economic crises fueled by the regime’s belligerent policies and sanctions, paint a grim picture. Women’s employment and economic participation have significantly declined under the 13th government, which actively promotes a stay-at-home housewife model.
Furthermore, the 7th Development Plan’s emphasis on childbearing, motherhood, and homemaking as organized roles suggests a potential future decline in Iranian women’s workforce participation.
Experts point to another crucial factor: the alarming rise in unemployment among young Iranian women who previously ran virtual and home-based businesses through Instagram. This trend aligns with the significant internet speed reduction and disruptions that followed the national uprising in late 2022.
