Gender Disparity in the Nigerian Labour Force: Implications for Counselling

Women's working life is deeply imbued with sexism. Ingrained in this, is the fact that the structure of the Nigerian public and private sector of the labour force do not appear to favour the women folk, who are already seen by society as participating in a “man's world”. There are obvious and subtle discriminations against women in the area of employment patterns, job schedules and promotions, to mention just a few. These have constrained and affected the productivity of women in the labour force. This paper highlights those specific areas of disparity in the public and private sectors of the nation's labour force and proffers solutions, that are counselling based, which will enable the policy makers close up these gaps and create a more conducive working environment that will enhance women's productivity. Keywords: Gender, disparity, labour force, counselling implications. The Nigerian Journal of Guidance and Counselling Vol. 11 (1) 2006: pp. 76-8