Night shifts, unfair to the fair sex

An expert panel headed by Mr Narendra Jadhav, Member, Planning Commission is giving the final touches to its recommendations on the proposed amendments to the Factories Act 1948, after a series of consultations with employers, trade unions and experts.

Among the key changes being proposed by the government, such as higher penalties on employers and workers for flouting workplace norms, increase in overtime hours, and so on, there's one that, if cleared, will allow women to be deployed on late night shifts, that is between 7 p.m and 6 a.m.

Gender parity

This, the government says, is being done to give equal job opportunities to women. Employers, too, have been espousing the cause of gender parity in the job market and have described this move as ‘bold'. A paper prepared by Assocham, for instance, says, “Women have become equal participants in many respects at all levels of society. The future would see more women venturing into areas traditionally dominated by men. This will lead to income generation and greater sense of fulfilment among women.”

Noble as these thoughts may seem, women's groups and trade unions don't quite share the enthusiasm, a major reason for their scepticism being that the situation of women on the ground is quite different.

The vast majority of working women in India still bear the burden of housework, often neglect their own health, but care for the family, earn an income and yet do not have a say in how it is spent, and feel insecure.

On March 10, two days after International Women's Day this year, there was a ruckus in Parliament on the issue of rising crimes against women, which have gone up by 4 per cent, as per the National Crime Record Bureau's latest data. Has any study been done on the impact of late night shifts on women's health and reproductive system before proposing such changes? Implementation by the labour law machinery in India is already quite poor.

“There are many units that are already making women work all night, without putting proper safeguards in place'', says Ms Indrani Mazumdar, Fellow, Centre of Women's Development Studies, Delhi, who has done extensive research on the condition of women workers in Special Economic Zones.

As it is, women form a poor 15 per cent of the workforce in India. Ms Mazumdar feels that if night shifts become part of the routine work, or a ‘condition of service', then more women may opt out of the workforce or lose out in comparison with their male counterparts.

Trade unions (TUs) are also divided on the issue. “As per law, women should be dropped home. But we don't see this happening. The government should set up a committee to ensure implementation of all the proposed safeguards”, says Mr R. A. Mital, Secretary, Hind Mazdoor Sabha.

“In the name of avoiding ‘discrimination', this sweeping provision should not be brought in. There have been a series of attacks and harassment of women employees working on late night shifts. It is practically neither possible to provide security to each and every women worker in the night shift nor residential accommodation nearer to the enterprises,” Mr H. Madhavan of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) feels.

Implementation, the key

Mr Swades Devroye of The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) also raised the question of implementation. “Such amendments cannot be passed in haste.

They have to be first ratified at various levels, by Parliament, the Standing Committee etc…It's a long process.” As per the proposed amendments, the respective State government or any person authorised by it could allow employment of women during night only after consulting workers or their representative organisations and concerned employers or their representatives.

This can be done only if they are ‘‘satisfied that adequate safeguards as regards occupational safety and health'' and “adequate protection for their dignity, honour, and safety from sexual harassment” and “transportation from the factory premises to the nearest point of their residence' is ensured.

That might sound very fair. It's implementation that holds the key. Also, as women's groups have pointed out, in a patriarchal society such as India, it seems farcical to focus on night shifts as a symbol of women's empowerment.

If the government is really serious about empowering women, more education, better healthcare and social security are the way to go.

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