Out of every four companies existing in our country, one has a woman at the helm. In various provincial realities, such as Avellino and Benevento, or regional ones, such as Molise, the army of women who do business reaches 30% of the total. In some sectors, then, such as health and personal services, almost one company out of two is "pink". This is the photograph of the universe of female entrepreneurship in Italy in 2013, taken by the Unioncamere Observatory. At the end of last December, 1.429.897 women-led enterprises, equal to 23,6% of the total national production fabric, nevertheless found the resources and energy to grow by 3.415 units compared to the same period of the previous year.
Less than in the past, of course, but with the courage, obstinacy and creativity that so many women have been able to demonstrate over time. And even with more temperament than the average, given that their increase is higher in percentage terms than that of the total companies (+0,24% against +0,20%). A dynamic also confirmed by the data for the three-year period: between December 2011 and December 2013, in fact, the companies in the pink register a percentage change of 0,75% (equal to +10.713 units), compared to an average of the entire entrepreneurial fabric Italian which, in the same period, increased by 0,56%.
As far as dependent work is concerned, on the basis of the recruitment forecasts for 2013, collected by the Excelsior information system of Unioncamere and the Ministry of Labour, industrial and service companies had planned to hire at least 104 women.
“To give birth to a business, economic resources are needed. And this is a big problem above all – but not only – for the many women who could give substance to their aspirations by setting up their own business – underlines the president of Unioncamere, Ferruccio Dardanello -. On their way, however, they will meet the Committees for Female Entrepreneurship, a terminal dedicated to women of the Chambers of Commerce, strongly engaged in recent months in raising awareness of the productive fabric about the opportunities provided by the Special Section of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers - Equal Department opportunities of the Guarantee Fund for SMEs expressly dedicated to women, operational since 14 January. In fact, the Government has chosen the Committees, with the Chambers of Commerce, as territorial offices and our structures have put all their energies into the field to activate ad hoc information points".
What women choose and where
Molise (29,7%), Abruzzo (27,8%) and Basilicata (27,7%) are the regions where the incidence of the female entrepreneurial component is greater. Among the provinces, however, Avellino and Benevento stand out, with over 32%, Frosinone and Isernia, which exceed 30%, Chieti, Campobasso and Grosseto with percentages over 29%.
In doing business, women show a high dose of concreteness, having chosen over time areas which, by tradition but also because they are probably closer to female sensitivity, are better suited to the "pink" universe: commerce, agriculture and tourism, therefore, are the sectors in which female enterprises are more numerous. However, the other service activities, and, within them, in particular, personal services, and healthcare are the sectors in which the female component has a greater percentage weight, reaching almost 50% in the first case, exceed 40% in the second. This is followed by accommodation and catering activities and education, in which one out of 3 businesses is led by women.
What has changed in one year
After having achieved consistent growth rates, women's businesses too – like the entire entrepreneurial universe – slow down their gallop, growing substantially in mid-2012. This year Lombardy, Lazio and Tuscany record the largest balances and variations high, going to offset the reductions above all in Liguria, Piedmont and Friuli Venezia Giulia in terms of balance, and in Valle d'Aosta and Basilicata in terms of percentage variation. At the provincial level, Rome and Milan are even more attractive this year for business women, recording positive balances of 1.501 and 1.410 respectively. However, the pink jersey in terms of percentage variation belongs to Prato, Novara, Milan and Syracuse, where women's businesses grow by 2%.
If in 2013 the sector that recorded the largest balance (+3.727 companies) was the tourism sector, the presence of "pink" companies was strengthened even in traditionally male sectors: financial and insurance activities, for example, had 1.806 more female companies ; those of rental, travel agencies and business support services 1.515 more; Construction, in contrast with the total number of enterprises, recorded an increase of 991 female-led enterprises. On the opposite front, Agriculture which (in line with the structural adjustment of the sector underway for over a decade) records a loss of 10.669 female enterprises, and Manufacturing activities (-527).
Women's businesses, structurally still rather weak (almost 853 sole proprietorships today registered with the Chambers of Commerce), however seem projected towards a more modern organization in line with the times: in 2013, there were as many as 9.548 more joint-stock companies compared to the previous year, with an increase of 4,37%. The positive balance of the Cooperatives is also substantial (+823 equal to +2,77%). On the other hand, the crisis above all affects sole proprietorships, which have lost 6.246 positions this year, and partnerships (which have decreased by 1.066 units).
104 women working in companies in 2013
As for dependent work, the hiring programs coming from industrial and service companies involved 104 women last year. The forecasts monitored by the Excelsior information system of Unioncamere and the Ministry of Labor show that, of the approximately 563.400 non-seasonal and seasonal entries programmed by the private sector, almost 104.400 were reserved for women, over 162.400 for men, while for almost 300 hires (almost 53%) firms did not provide gender preferences.
The female component is still concentrated mainly in four sectors of economic activity (all services), which absorb over 70% of the overall demand for women: tourism, accommodation and catering services, with almost 29.000 recruitments expected in 2013 (28 % of total recruitments in pink); trade (over 18.000 and 17%); personal services (almost 17.000 and 16%); a further 10% of women scheduled to be hired in 2013 were expected to enter the sector of operational support services for businesses and people.
The industry as a whole absorbs less than 30% of the female component of the demand for work by companies, which is concentrated mainly in the food and fashion industries (about 4.500 hires, equal to over 4% of the total female hirings in both cases), in the engineering and electronic industries (almost 3.000 hires and 3%) and in construction (2.600 hires and 3%). Among the "most female" professions in 2013, those belonging to the group of qualified figures stand out commercial and service activities (45.000 planned "pink" hires, equal to 43% of total female hires).
On the other hand, the degree of absorption by professional groups such as artisans and skilled workers is low (5.600 hires, equal to 5% of the female total; the corresponding share, in males, reaches 35%) and plant operators and fixed machinery workers and mobile (4.800 hires, 4%; 19% in the case of men).
