The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Minister’s remark draws workers’ ire

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Minister’s remark draws workers’ ire

Special Correspondent

Bacche Gowda had said that there were no reports of sexual harassment

Organisation produces records of seven complaints
‘Suffering abuse has become a way of life’

Bangalore: Labour Minister B.N. Bacche Gowda’s statement on the floor of the House that there are no reports of sexual harassment of garment workers in Bangalore has been refuted by women garment workers.

Garments Mahila Karmikara Munnade, a workers’ collective, has produced records of seven complaints filed by the organisation of alleged abuse and harassment of garment workers at workplace with the Labour Department and with the Karnataka State Women’s Commission.

“These formal complaints are just the tip of the iceberg,” said Pratibha R. of the organisation. “Suffering abuse and harassment at the hands of supervisors and other higher-ups are a way of life for most garment workers. Most of them do not come out because the atmosphere inside factories makes it impossible and there is no job security,” she said.

On Friday, a day after the Minister made the statement, a 21-year-old garment worker lodged a complaint with the Kengeri police station alleging harassment and assault at a factory in Babasabarapalya in Kengeri hobli.

Saroja M.S., an employee with Bombay Rayon Fashion Ltd., has, in her complaint, alleged that she was abused and physically pushed out of the premises for refusing to leave the factory without a formal letter by the management stating that her work had been terminated.

“I was asked to give a letter of resignation, and when I refused, I was pushed out by the security guards,” she said. She had been verbally humiliated and made to stand for hours inside her supervisor’s cabin, she has alleged.

The police, who were initially reluctant to accept the complaint, have now given her an acknowledgement but have so far not filed an FIR, according to Ms. Saroja. She has attached a certificate from Victoria Hospital with the complaint which says that she has suffered injuries on her left arm which occurred during an “alleged assault by security guards”.

Earlier, cases filed by the munnade and garment workers in their individual capacity explain the nature of abuse. In all, the seven complaints cited by the munnade, lodged 2004 onwards, the workers have spoken of how they were summoned to their superior’s cabins and abused and insulted in sexually-loaded language. “Abusing in language with sexual undertones is the norm,” claimed Ms. Pratibha.

In one complaint to the Women’s Commission in September 2004, Neela S.R., a worker of Puneet Garments, had said that she was pushed around and abused. She added: “There are 300 women workers in my factory and all of them face abuse. But none dare protest openly.”

Ms. Pratibha said that fear and insecurity continues to force women not to voice protest against abuse. It is unfortunate, she added, that the Minister had made the statement despite the fact that definition of “sexual harassment of women in workplace”, as stated in the Supreme Court judgment in the Vishakha case, includes all “unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.”

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