On the path to parity

Behind every successful man is a woman who single handedly runs his household, mothers his children and is often assumed to be responsible for all the  unpaid work. If a working woman is left to shoulder these crucial responsibilities alone, it is humanly impossible for her to grab opportunities or set aside sufficient time and energy to engage in economic activities as her male counterpart does.

While the etymology of gender equality is to treat all employees —male and female of the organisation equally, gender parity refers to the equal contribution of women and men to every dimension of life —  whether formal or informal, public or private.

To help close this disparity, the Asian Women Leadership Summit (AWLS) 2018, will be held in Mumbai on November 15 with the core objective of promoting gender diversity in a way that creates successful women in leadership positions through male advocacy and equal participation. Jack Dorsey Co-Founder and CEO Twitter Inc will be among the 25 distinguished speakers at the summit this year.

Nishtha Satyam, UN Women Deputy Country Representative of India, who will also be speaking at the summit, has been an activate participant in restoring this balance in society. She says, despite rapid economic growth, discrimination and violence against women and girls is pervasive in our country.  

On closer examinations, the numbers are disturbing. India ranks 127 out of 160 on the Gender Inequality Index, whereas women's labour force participation has alarmingly declined from 34 percent to 27 percent. At the UN Women, Nishtha and her team work very closely with the government, civil societies, and private sector to ensure that no woman or girl is left behind. She says, “While there is certainly a clear need for policy initiatives and their effective implementation to empower women, we need to ensure that such mechanisms are also reflective of women's voice, choice, and right to agency. There is also a need for such policies to be backed by adequate financial resources and intent.”

On the other hand she highlights the other challenges women in formal institutions of work, “These include disparities in wages, sexual harassment at the workplace, lack of access to rights and entitlements - including issues related to paid parental leave, flexible working arrangements and child care facilities.”

The biggest bottlenecks for organisations today are — hiring, retention and growth of women.

While on the legislative level the government has enacted initiatives such as Beti Padhao Beti Bachao, at the organisational level there is a need for an initiatives such as, Beti Vapas Lao, Tapati Bandyopadhyay, General Manager, Wipro HOLMES  says, in order for women to be able to also give their best at work, their personal priorities based on life stages need to also be addressed. “It is essential that companies invest in these relevant support services. When women come back to work after a break, upskilling must be their priority, as it helps them to know the current pulse of an industry.”

She also hints at the preconceived notions about maternity leaves and the motherhood penalty women pay and the idea of taking a break in general, “Globally, in any industry there is an unconscious bias prevalent about people who have taken a break from work. We should be conscious of this and help break the bias. We should be open, meet and explore talent across different experiences, backgrounds and encourage a truly inclusive workplace.”

Usha Sangwan, Managing Director at Life Insurance Corporation of India, is also the first woman to reach this position, is also a speaker at the summit. She believes that woman neither have a mental block for career advancement nor lack motivation to be leaders. They, however, have harder choices to make depending on their life circumstances.  “To my mind, women will prove to be much better as entrepreneurs where they can manage their time, develop their businesses and emerge as leaders.  Women of today have to understand their own strengths, liking and aptitude.  With clarity in mind and determination in heart, they can work on situations and circumstances to reach their potential.  Wherever required, they should develop the confidence to speak to near and dear ones about their aspirations and seek support,” she advises.

In general, some of the common barriers women face at the workplace are the mental map of male colleagues like unconscious bias, infrastructural issues like workplace location and hygiene, issues related to travel for business purposes and lastly family and work balance. Says Hetal Desai, Diector, AWLS, “I have experienced it myself that the work as such is not an issue, but the working environment and colleagues are what affects work. Here in this summit we are precisely focusing on those issues. We would like the leaders of the organisations to think if they are providing an atmosphere of fairness and stability to the employees of both genders,  all are treated basis the merit.”