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Photo: Shaju John

Safety under cloud Women who work post-sunset shifts are the most vulnerable

Tell-us-what-you-thinks are flying thick on TV and Web channels. Why didn’t she call? (She’s a call-centre employee, right?) Why did she go alone? Didn’t she learn self-defence drills? The discussion is shrilly reaching its predictable conclusion, “It’s all her fault”, stopping just short of “she must have asked for it.” Bristled a BPO employee, “Why isn’t there a campaign asking men to behave? We should be able to work wherever we want, what about our choices?” The pertinent question in all this hasn’t found even a feeble voice: Why isn’t our society safe for women?

BPO is not the only sector with post-sunset shifts. Women have been sorting fish at night since men went out to catch them. Women nurses have been doing night rounds for ages. Airlines, hotels and service industries have large contingents of 24/7 workers of both genders. The media have late night shifts, don’t they? Even as I write this, the Orissa episode is screaming off the TV screens. A couple of goons stopped a tourist bus, pulled a woman out in front of a frozen group, gang-raped and abandoned her. In daylight. She boarded that Konarak bus “at her own peril”?

Debate on sex work is another cruel joke. Sex work is a criminal offence, take action against them for spreading HIV/AIDS. This, while prostitution is not illegal here. Infochange India tells us, “The law does not prohibit an individual from engaging in sex for money. What the law makes criminal, inter alia, is trafficking in women and children for the purpose of sex work, soliciting in public and living off the income of a sex worker.” The criminals are the brothel-keepers, pimps and clients - they indulge in coercion, violence and abuse. “What we do is a human right,” say these women. They want to be allowed to practise their trade without exploitation and stigma.

Onto sexual harassment in the workplace. The head of the political science department at Delhi University was found guilty of sexual harassment. What action has been taken against him? Just think.

If this happens in “intellectual” corridors, is there hope for women in “lesser” environments? It isn’t really surprising that there’s no legislation against sexual harassment, only a set of guidelines by the Supreme Court. Wait a bit. Do the courts have complaint committees recommended by the Supreme Court?

How about the work atmosphere? A steady stream of research pours in evidence that men and women are viewed differently at the workplace, measured against different standards. Top women executives routinely admit that they have to work three times harder. Things don’t improve because there aren’t many influential women leaders – in politics or business. Enough to make you feel deflated.

If you act “womanly” – focussing on work relationships, caring for other people’s viewpoints – expect a thumbs-down on competence. But be more like a “male” – act assertive, work long hours, be ambitious – you get a thumbs-down again, this time for being too tough and unfeminine. As the research report put it, “Damned if You Do, Doomed if You Don’t.” Women can’t win.

A recent study collected opinions on what made an ideal leader. Some picked team-building, others problem-solving and delegating. Whatever it was, women didn’t have them. Another study interestingly proved that workplace anger in men impressed colleagues; in women, it met with disapproval. Angry, she’s “out of control”. Strong, she’s “strident” or its synonyms. She takes leave, isn’t serious about her career. One researcher said, “Women can be liked and not respected, or respected and not liked.” To compound all this, women are poor at negotiating their salary and increment.

Try fashioning yourself according to study results. Don’t get angry, but be in control. Be nice, but not too nice. Speak up, but carefully. Be assertive, but not too much. Inspire your colleagues, delegate work. Never, ever dress “sexy”.

The bottomline: The individual is not the problem, the corporation is. Women should be assured of a friendly (but not too friendly!) workplace – free of bias, discrimination and harassment. Actions for which a woman employee is pilloried should invite the same punishment if done by men. Employers know the value of this talent pool. If they don’t ensure safety and dignity, they’ll be forced to face the whiplash - hostility toward men.

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