Problems Faced by Women at Workplace

Women have come a long way and today they are no less than “super women” juggling well their family and professional lives. But still women folks all over suffer from certain limitations unlike their male counterparts. In earlier days, women used to be quiet and passive in their attitude at their workplace since very few women actually stepped out of their home to do jobs. On the other hand, women today, are believed to have well utilized the optimum use of their intelligence and education to scale the heights of success unlike their predecessors who didn't have access to such wide resources of education and proper awareness.

Statistics reveal that almost 40% of business school graduates are women, 38% of all businesses in America are owned and operated by women. Also 25% of doctors and lawyers are female while 43% of all students in any medical or law school are females. Famous social psychologists believe that in order to manage well both family and home they need to possess dual personality as its commonly believed that assuming a flirtatious and bubbly character at work results in wider acceptance among male workers whereas at home they are expected to be more reserved.

The jobs in India for women have gone up and new career development programs are being initiated by organizations which serves as boost to job positions for women. Women have made their foray into retail jobs, finance, executive jobs and even top managerial jobs. But still women face some obstacles at their workplace which can be related to :

• The hazards, which working women face along with their male colleagues, i.e. those risks which are common to all the workers.
• The risks, which working women face in their families and in the society.

Health Risks Faced By Women At Workplace:
While we talk of problems faced by women at corporate level its worthy to mention that those women who are working at rural sectors are at equal risk when it comes to their health. It is generally believed that women prefer part-time or work from home jobs as such jobs enable them to balance their work along with their domestic responsibilities. But in some cases its observed that specially in case of works like-nursing jobs, contract jobs fact, flexible working hours as per the requirement of the employers makes things quite difficult for women.

Its important to note that absence of clearly defined work schedule increases the stress and impacts their health. A large number of women workers is said to complain of frequent headaches, back pain, fatigue and high blood pressure. Also factors such as-- Poor nutritional status, anaemia, tension, concentrated attention required by some jobs in industries related to embroidery, electric appliances, gems, jewelery etc, which demands intellectual or mental activities increases fatigue. A large number of women workers complain of symptoms such as irritability, mood swings, depression, sadness and concentration problems.

Laws Protecting The Rights Of Women At Workplace:
With the passage of time numerous laws have been implemented in favor of working women. Some of them are:

Equal Remuneration Act: This law is applicable to all employees including those in the private and government sectors. It states that employees of both genders doing the same or similar work of the same value be paid equal remuneration in cash and kind.

Maternity Benefits Act: According to this Act a woman is entitled to payment during her maternity leave at the rate at which she was working prior to the leave period.

The Factory Act of 1948, Mines Act of 1952,Plantation Labour Act of 1951 in India were passed to protect and regulate the wages of women from time to time without any discrimination.