Workplace Safety For Women: In the fast-paced world, organizational safety and security of one’s workplace environment is significantly important. With greater incidence of sexual harassment and violence against women, it has become more important for employers to ensure a safe workplace environment.
The Need to Women’s Safety
Data from the NCRB indicates a shocking trend stating that more than 400 cases of workplace sexual harassment come to the fore every year in India since 2018.
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This is indeed a very worrying figure that show the widespread nature of the problem. A recent incident in Kolkata, where a doctor was raped and murdered, showed how unsafe the environment.
Perceptions from Women Entrepreneurs
Women entrepreneur offer numerous useful insights in creating workplace safety for women. The put emphasis on the significance of developing an approach that takes physical security measures and a supportive work culture.
Key Recommendations of Workplace Safety For Women
Strong Safety Protocols: Make strict and clear policies against harassment, and offer continuous training to employees on good workplace behaviour and consent.
Build an Awareness and Supportive System: Encourage open communications and create supportive environments where a female is at ease to report concerns.
Execute Physical Security Measures: Make investments in physical security measures and provide hybrids and flexi-work arrangements as a strategy of risk minimization.
Encourage open dialogue: Create a place where safety insight can be shared and safety concerns can be discussed, thus preventing them before they occur.
Be Holistic: Legal measures must be combined with cultural change and community involvement to make women safer.
Insight at Human Rights
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013, makes it mandatory for all workplaces to set up Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). These committees have an important role in addressing the complaints related to sexual harassment.
The Vishaka guidelines, on the other hand provide a guiding framework for putting in place the mandate for women’s safety at the workplace across organizations.
Challenges Faced
Despite the legal frameworks and clear guidelines on these challenges, the challenge of ensuring safety at workplace for women remains. These include:
Unawareness: Most employees are not aware of their rights and the proper procedures of reporting harassment.
Retaliation: Many women are likely not to speak up because they fear losing jobs and social stigmatization.
Investigation is inadequate and redress provided lacks in effectiveness.
All these challenges need a concerted effort of employers, employees, and policy makers. It is in the hands of an employer to take measures in creating and maintaining a healthy and inclusive workplace, while an employee should be encouraged so that they reports the harassment with no fear at all.
The legal framework should be strengthened by the policymakers and this framework should also be judiciously implemented.
Conclusion
Hence, it is the basic right of every worker to have a safe working place, irrespective of gender. We need to appreciate that work safety is not just a legal mandate for any employer but a moral mandate.
A culture of respect, support and accountability for women to do well in their careers and contribute fully can be formed at the workplace.