Women welfare issues at workplace

1. WOMEN WELFARE ISSUES AT WORKPLACE BY AKSHATA RAI RITU KARN

2. WELFARE Welfare is the provision of a minimal level of wellbeing and social support for all citizens, sometimes referred to as public aid. In most developed countries, welfare is largely provided by the government and to a lesser extent charities, informal social groups, religious groups, and intergovernmental organizations.

3. SOME OF THE ISSUES WOMEN FACE AT WORKPLACE Glass ceiling Pregnancy discrimination Gender Discrimination Sexual Harassment

4. THE GLASS CEILING AND WORKING WOMEN Whenever we talk about women empowerment these names immediately strike our minds - Ms.Indira Nooyi, Ms.Chanda Kochar, Ms.Pratibha Patil, Ms.Saina Nehwal, Ms.Kiran Bedi

5. CONTD.. The glass ceiling is a concept from the 1980s describing an invisible barrier that blocks the access of women to the top. Women still face hindrances in reaching top positions. The phrase glass ceiling was introduced to illustrate a world where businesswomen in their attempt to reach top positions are blocked by corporate tradition and prejudice.

6. SUGGESTIONS ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONS: acceptance that women can be in senior positions and the belief that they can collaborate with men to build a great work environment. Build an eco-system for women in the organization where the womanly qualities are valued. Try to change mindsets through gender audits and gender sensitization training and workshops.

7. CONTD.. Assess women on the deliverables and their challenges rather than on personal traits, whether they can put long hours at work, or their efforts are visible. Perceive women as significant players at senior positions. Nurture and develop them through focused executive mentoring, leadership training programs, special training programs to build communication skills, confidence and developmental workshops.

8. CONTD.. By sending them on overseas assignments so that women can acquire new skill-sets, get a global mindset, and position themselves as strategic thinkers and innovators, and open up access to corporate network groups. Build a focused career-progression plan for women. Provide flexible work arrangements, a caring and supportive climate, have family-friendly policies like maternity leave, paternity leave, child-care leave, etc.

9. CONTD.. ROLE OF WOMEN: Women can discover prospects and emphasize who they are and what have they accomplished. Ask for challenging assignments and more responsibility. Make a difference at every job so that they stand out and change biases. Constantly learn and improve. Become domain experts. Try to get maximum exposure and experience through job rotation and transfers.

10. MATERNITY DISCRIMINATION Dismissing, demoting or disciplining females either because of their pregnancy or maternity leave is known as discrimination because of pregnancy and maternity leave.

11. CONTD.. For example, it would be pregnancy and maternity leave discrimination if a female is dismissed or disciplined: because she is unable to do her job during her pregnancy for health and safety reasons because she asks to take maternity leave or is on maternity leave.

12. EXAMPLES OF MATERNITY LEAVE DISCRIMINATION suspension from work by the employer for health and safety reasons and full pay is not received. dismissal because the employers say they can't afford to pay her statutory maternity pay. if the female is disciplined for having performance issues due to an illness connected with her pregnancy. if the employer fails to carry out a health and safety risk measures and forces her to resign if the employer demotes or dismisses her, or stops her from having training or promotion opportunities, because she is pregnant or on maternity leave if the employer chooses her for redundancy because she is pregnant.

13. SUGGESTIONS If a female is treated unfairly because she is pregnant or on maternity leave, following can be done. Raising a grievance with her employer: Formal written complaint to the employer can be given, using a grievance procedure. Making a claim to an employment tribunal: If the problem is still not solved using a grievance procedure, she can make a claim for pregnancy and maternity discrimination to an employment tribunal.

14. APPLYING FOR A JOB WHEN THE FEMALE IS PREGNANT An employer cant refuse to employ a female candidate just because she is pregnant. They should base their decision on whether she is having the required job skills and not on whether she is pregnant. There is no liability to tell the employer that a female pregnant while applying for the job. If she does tell and not offered the job because of this then this will be pregnancy discrimination. Also they must not dismiss her when they find out about the pregnancy after her joining.

15. GENDER DISCRIMINATION Payment. Promotion Job title

16. CONTD... India has the distinction of being the lowest ranked on gender parity, which includes pay parity, among the BRIC economies. This was revealed in the Global Gender Gap Report of 2010.

17. SOME OTHER DISCRIMINATIONS APPEARANCE PHYSICAL ABILITY

18. SEXUAL HARASSMENT AT WORK PLACE It is a behavior where unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature occur at workplace. Workplace sexual harassment is one of the most difficult and insidious issues to tackle, because victims are so often in a position of vulnerability, afraid of damaging their careers or even losing their jobs altogether.

19. TYPES VERBAL: Referring to an adult as babe, baby. Whistling at someone and making sexual comments. Making kissing sounds, howling. Repeatedly asking out a person who is not interested. NON-VERBAL: Looking at a person up and down or staring. Blocking a persons path or following Giving personal gifts Displaying sexually suggestive visuals Making facial expressions such as winking, throwing kisses

20. CONTD... PHYSICAL: Putting arms around shoulders. Touching the persons clothing, hair or body. Hugging, kissing, patting or stroking. Standing close or brushing up against another person.

21. SUGGESTIONS ROLE OF OFFICE EMPLOYEE: ROLE OF VICTIM ROLE OF ORGANIZATION/MANAGEMENT:

22. STORY OF ARUNA SHANBAUG, NURSE KEM HOSPITAL, MUMBAI NOV-27,1973

23. ARUNAS STORY On the evening of November 27, 1973, nurse Aruna Ramchandra Shanbaug was attacked by a sweeper in KEM hospital where she worked. Allegedly enraged at her for telling him off and threatening to report a theft by him, he accosted her when she was changing in a basement room, wrapping a dog chain around her neck. He tried to rape her but , he sodomised her, the chain twisted around her neck cutting off oxygen to her brain. Aruna was found lying on the floor with blood all over, unconscious. While her immediate family, including brother Balkrishna Shanbaug and a sister, came to visit her in hospital in the early months after the incident, she was later abandoned by the family. Her fiance, a doctor, reportedly left the country after a few years. A sister, Shanta Nayak, continues to live in Mumbai, not far from KEM Hospital.

24. ACTS EMPOWERING WOMEN Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 Equal opportunity, equal treatment and equal wages Maternity Benefit Act, 1961

25. The Factories Act, 1948 Section 34 provides that the State government can lay down rules prescribing weights that may be carried by men and women. crches The Contract Labor (Abolition and Regulation) Act and RulesSeparate provision of utilities for women and fixed working hours.

26. SEXUAL HARASSMENT ACT 2013 The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressed ) Act, 2013 is a legislative act in India that seeks to protect women from sexual harassment at their place of work. It was passed by the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Indian Parliament) on 3 September 2012. It was passed by the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of the Indian Parliament) on February 26, 2013.The Bill got the assent of the President on 23 April 2013.

27. Representation and reservations on decision making bodies 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Constitution providing for reservations of seats for women in Panchayats and Municipalities

Women welfare issues at workplace

Business

sexual harassment

glass ceiling

senior positions

maternity leave

safety reasons

kem hospital

employment tribunal

indian parliament