April 26th, 2010
According to a recent survey conducted by the AbsolutData Research and Analytics it was found out that “threat of sexual harassment”, “office politics” and “discrimination in pay/promotion” are among the main challenges that working women face at their work place. We spoke to a few women to check if they too face similar incidents.
Though women are working with men, there are still a lot of areas in the employment sector where one can find a gender bias. Harpreet Singh, who works for a private bank mentions, “In banks, women face a lot of discrimination when it comes to increasing the salary or promotion. In our bank for instance, promoting women up to branch manger level is common, but it is really difficult for them to get promoted to the position of a regional head. Most of the time men bosses give excuses like, women can’t handle late night shifts and often take leave due to family affairs; hence they are unfit for top positions.”
Kirti Mathur, an interior designer agrees and adds, “In offices women workers still face discrimination and gender bias. In our field too when it comes to visiting worksites or running around to collect goods, men are preferred. Also if there are a fewer number of women in a department, usually men try to sideline them.”
Though, office politics and gender bias are common problems seen in most offices, some women also feel threatened by sexual harassment.
Arkiti Nath (name changed on request), an HR manager says, “I often get complaints from women about misbehaviour by their bosses. There are a few male bosses, who try and take ‘favours’ from their female subordinates in the name of work. Usually women workers avoid such issues because they fear it might jeopardise their career in later stages.”
However, Smriti Das, a PR professional sums up and opines, “All these issues are present in the corporate sector and if a woman has to survive, she has to be quite smart and efficient in her work to be on the safe side.”
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