What are the labour laws for Empowerment of women ? Ans. 2. The labour laws for empowerment of women are based on principle of gender justice. They are as follows:  Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 ensures equal opportunity, equal treatment and equal wages.  Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 provides 90 days paid leave for working women  The Factories Act, 1948 – Section 34 provides that the State government can lay down rules prescribing weights that may be carried by men and women.  The Contract Labour (Abolition and Regulation) Act and Rules- separate provision of utilities for women and fixed working hours.  Women in the unorganized sector don’t get benefits of the labour laws.

1. Women’s Rights at the Workplace Dr Vibhuti Patel, Reader, Centre for Women’s Studies, Economic Department, University of Mumbai.E-mail- [email_address] Phone-26770227 Fax-26528198 Academic Advisor Sophia Centre for Women’s Studies and Development Sophia College Campus, Mumbai-400026

3. Work participation rate

6. Distribution of Women Employees Across Industries 55.6 Community, social & personnel services sectors 51 Plantation 6 Mines 14 Factories 4.9 Finance,insurance,real estate & business 9.8 Agriculture & Allied Occupation 21.4 Manufacturing % Industry

8. Women in the Informal Sector 94% of women workers are in the informal sector.There is pronounced declining trend in the importance of the self employed women in both, rural and urban areas. Erosion of credit/ loan facilities due to structural adjustment programme is a major reason for women being weeded out of the market. Safety net of social sector budget is also weak. Women workers in the informal sector are governed by the law of jungle.

13. Labour Legislations Legal Services Act, 1987 Child Labour (P&R) Act,1986 Migration Workers’ Act,76 Equal Remune- ration Act,’76 Bonded Labour Act, 1976 The Contract Labour Act, ’70 Bidi & Cigar Workers Act,’96 Plantation Labour Act,’51 Maternity Benefits Act,’61 The Factories Act, 1948 The Minimum Wages Act, 1948 Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1932.

14. Special Facilities for Women * Special buses and trains for working women *Part time work, Flexi time *Prohibition of Night work *Maternity benefits and day care centres *Occupational health & Safety *Women’s cooperatives, Self employed women *Female headed households *working women’s hostels at district/ tehsil levels

15. Women and Trade Unions(T.U.) * Declining participation of women in the male dominated Trade Unions *Women’s cells/crocuses being formed in the progressive unions *Inter-union rivalry- violence *Subculture of T.U.-language, habits *Attitude of the state- police,administration, courts *Attitude and reaction of the family

18. Women and Development Debate Conventional indicators of DEVELOPMENT are economic growth, rise in national & per capita income and GDP, rapid pace of urbanisation, high mobility of labour & capital, expansion of industrial base, agrarian growth and growth of foreign trade. This thinking has been challenged by gender economists as this indicators have not taken into consideration just distribution of resources, opprtunities and material wellbeing to majority of human beings, especially women.

19. Development Alternatives With Women Women in Development-awareness about marginalisation of women, Towards Equality Report, The UN Charter, 1975.Equality, Deve, Peace Women & Development- integration of women in the mainstream through Education, health and economic development of women- NPP, GOI. Gender & Development- bending the existing power structure in favour of women thru’ empowerment of women in apex bodies of decision making. CEDAW

20. Human Development With Distributive Justice Main indicators of human development are educational achievements, income, health profile and human rights. Human Development Report, 2001 has provided development radars comprising of 8 indicators- indices of poverty, per capita consumption expenditure, life expectancy at age one, infant mortality rates, intensity of formal education, literacy rates, access to safe drinking water, proportion of households with pucca houses. What about declining sex- ratio ?

21. Implications of Development Process on Women *Women don’t have control ovewr resources in the subsistance sector. *Women work for more hours & in return get less wages. *Land reforms have taken away land rights of women as the titles were made in the name of men. *Girl Child labour are extremely vulnerable. *Absence of socvial services for women workers increases women’s plight at the time of pregnancy, old age, illness and destitution.

22. Use of conservative ideology to retrench and lay off women Women become major victims of rationalisation, mechanisation and automation. When structural changes take place, women are not selected for skill upgradation, if they don’t assert collectively. But, new international division of labour has changed this dynamics as the focus is on induction of young, moderately educated girls who would do minute and monotonous with concentration and dexterity.e.g. pharmaceuticals, computers, electronic, garments.

23. Women’s Challenges to the T.U.s Patriarchal structure of trade unions- Prejudice of male leaders- Women being treated as an auxiliary labour force that can be hired last at the time of economic expansion & fired first at the time of economic recession- Division of labour within Unions-Men as leaders and Women as supporters- Time & Place of Union meetings-Women’s role in collective bargaining & reflection of women’s aspirations and demands in the charter of demands- communal and casteist biases within T.U.Workers Education Programmes- CHILD LABOUR ?

24. Role of the UN System-ILO, UNICEF International Labour Organisation Standardisation of work hours Child labour prevention Occupational health and Safety Compensation for displaced population Human rights of ethnic minorities- wages & safety Economic activities for women refugees

25. Thank you