Monika A, Akilan S.T
India’s elderly population has been growing in recent years, and they are more concentrated in the informal sector for their livelihood. The conditions of ageing are significantly influenced by gender, with older women frequently experiencing more vulnerabilities than older men. This is mostly because of the cumulative consequences of gender inequality that they have encountered throughout their lives, such as restricted career possibilities, limited access to education, salary discrepancies, and reduced ownership of assets. As a result, women experience old age with economic and social insecurity. In old age, the long-term effects of engaging in informal labour become very noticeable. Informal work does not provide mechanisms for financial security in later life, in contrast to employment in the formal economy. The impact of lifelong involvement in informal employment on economic situations in old age, especially for women, has received little attention despite the expanding amount of research on informal labour and ageing. In light of this, the current study aims to investigate the financial instability that older women in North Chennai’s informal sector face. The study attempts to provide a comparative picture of how various labour trajectories affect economic conditions in later age by concentrating on both women who are still employed and those who have stopped working. The study uses a qualitative research design to investigate the economic insecurity that women in their old age face in their occupation in the informal sector. This method enables a thorough comprehension of respondents’ life experiences, perspectives, and difficulties as they enter old age.