As a substantial portion of the rural labor force migrates to urban areas, it is commonly assumed that women could take over traditionally male tasks in agricultural production, with potentially empowering outcomes for women. We study how changes in the supply of labor may influence female labor participation and empowerment outcomes. Using a detailed panel dataset on jute producers in the delta region of Bangladesh, we test whether out-migration of household members and perceived labor shortages are associated with the share of household and hired labor performed by women, and women’s empowerment. When a household experiences reduced household or hired labor supply, we observe a relatively larger use of female household labor, but a reduced share of female hired labor. We also find that reduced labor supply is not associated with significant reductions in gender wage gaps, or enhanced women’s empowerment. These findings suggest that given existing gender norms, male and female labor are not perfect substitutes for one another, and as a result, male outmigration is not associated with improved outcomes for women in cash crop production in the short run. Our results demonstrate a need for better understanding of the role of gender in rural labor markets, particularly in contexts of rapid urbanization.

随着相当一部分农村劳动力迁移到城市地区，人们普遍认为妇女可以接管农业生产中传统上由男性承担的任务，从而有可能赋予妇女权力。我们研究劳动力供给的变化如何影响女性劳动力参与和赋权结果。我们使用孟加拉国三角洲地区黄麻生产商的详细面板数据集，测试了家庭成员的外迁和劳动力短缺是否与妇女承担的家务劳动和雇佣劳动的比例以及妇女赋权有关。当一个家庭的家庭或雇佣劳动力供应减少时，我们观察到女性家务劳动的使用相对较多，但女性雇佣劳动力的比例有所减少。我们还发现，劳动力供应的减少与性别工资差距的显着缩小或妇女赋权的增强无关。这些研究结果表明，鉴于现有的性别规范，男性和女性劳动力并不是彼此完美的替代品，因此，短期内男性外移与女性经济作物生产成果的改善无关。我们的研究结果表明，需要更好地了解性别在农村劳动力市场中的作用，特别是在快速城市化的背景下。