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Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Disempowering women
The Times of India reports that "[the] Haryana government has sent notices to Gurgaon-based call centres asking them not to allow women employees on night shifts."
Do I even need to comment on this depressing, regressive move? One of the biggest indicators of a society's progress is the empowerment of women, and although women are still treated as a sub-species in most of the country (and all of rural India), at least in this one sector they are on par with men. According to the ToI report women constitute 40 percent of the workforce in Gurgaon-based call centres -- and, I would imagine, the numbers are similar through the BPO industry in India. Do some people feel threatened by this?
Well, back to the chulha. Shame on all of us. We elect the government, and we allow it to be oppress its citizens like this, with the money we pay as taxes. Maybe we should be more demanding?
There's a cost to industry here as well. But the cost to society is greater.
Cross-posted on The Indian Economy Blog.
Update (September 29): The Economic Times reports that the government action was not against the entire BPO industry in Gurgaon, but only against two companies, because they omitted to comply with some needless bureaucratic regulation.
Or maybe they didn't grease the right palms?
Do I even need to comment on this depressing, regressive move? One of the biggest indicators of a society's progress is the empowerment of women, and although women are still treated as a sub-species in most of the country (and all of rural India), at least in this one sector they are on par with men. According to the ToI report women constitute 40 percent of the workforce in Gurgaon-based call centres -- and, I would imagine, the numbers are similar through the BPO industry in India. Do some people feel threatened by this?
Well, back to the chulha. Shame on all of us. We elect the government, and we allow it to be oppress its citizens like this, with the money we pay as taxes. Maybe we should be more demanding?
There's a cost to industry here as well. But the cost to society is greater.
Cross-posted on The Indian Economy Blog.
Update (September 29): The Economic Times reports that the government action was not against the entire BPO industry in Gurgaon, but only against two companies, because they omitted to comply with some needless bureaucratic regulation.
Or maybe they didn't grease the right palms?
