FEMINIZATION OF WORK

BEEDI ROLLING INDUSTRY:

Rolling beedis, an indigenous, hand-made cigarette, has provided employment for millions of
Indians--most of them women--over the centuries.

Despite being identified as a hazardous occupation, beedi-rolling remains EXTREMELY popular

in India especially amongst women. There are about 4.4 MILLION WORKERS in this industry.
(according to Indian Labour Organization) The All India Beedi,Cigar and Tobacco Workers
Federation estimates women to be 90-95% of the total workers in beedi manufacture.(2003)

But, hour after hour of rolling beedis (a big revenue earner for our country) takes a HUGE TOLL
on the health of the beedi workers, many of whom live in UNSPEAKABLE POVERTY.

Even as the World Health Organization carries on a relentless global campaign against the
consumption of tobacco, little concern is exhibited about women beedi workers. These women,
who sit in one position FOR 10 TO 16 hours a day rolling beedis, the indigenous cigarette,
INHALE HUGE AMOUNTS OF TOBACCO.

Although beedi rolling has been identified as a 'hazardous occupation' by labour authorities, the
health and working conditions of beedi workers has not been in the forefront of public
consciousness. These women are otherwise known as "BEEDI ROLLING ROBOTS"
INDIAN LABOUR ORGANIZATION findings indicate -Fixed wages for rolling beedis varies
from Rs29 in Tripura to Rs64.8 in Gujarat.

"We are well aware that as beedi workers we are exposed to a variety of diseases.
But as we are not qualified to do any other job, this work is unavoidable. We have no access to
loans under the Village Development Programmes or employment schemes launched by the
government. Only the rich and powerful have access to those funds. Under these circumstances,
what can people like me do?" asks Rajasree, an outspoken beedi worker.

HOWEVER Now, the anti-tobacco movement is cutting demand--and the process threatening
their economic health. IN two beedi-rolling villages in Mangalore, South India, the International
Labor Organization (ILO)is offering these impoverished women new and better ways of earning a
living .'I've been rolling beedis for years, but now I have little work,' says Jalaja during the
meeting of a beedi workers' self-help group held recently in a south Indian village. 'The
government has banned tobacco smoking in public places' ...The women have gathered here to
discuss the challenges posed by an increasingly anti-tobacco movement. While declines in
smoking are a way to improve public health, the women IN BEEDI MANUFACTURE ARE
WORRIED ONLY ABOUT LOSING THEIR JOBS.WHAT CAN WE SAY ABOUT THIS?

Women are the architects of the society. They are the ones that work day in and day out.
they are the ones who put their lives at stake to make a living so I would like to conclude by
saying- If you want something said, ask a man; BUT IF YOU WANT SOMETHING DONE
ASK A WOMAN.

TEACHING:
Teaching is a holy profession and anyone related to this field is respectful and honorable because
they play a vital role in developing a person's life. The role of women in teaching profession is
not less important than the male teachers; instead it is observed that a woman can be a best
teacher due to the God gifted qualities of motherly nature. Moreover the power of making things
understandable is more in females as compared to males.

It is believed that a woman has the ability to meet the challenges of the environment (society),
she is an effective and positive change maker, she is thoughtful and ethical leader thus can handle
different curriculum in a fruitful manner. Moreover due to the fact that children can easily relate
to the female teachers as compared to males, thus women can make excellent teacher.

When we see the recent ratio of success in the field of education women took clear lead from the
men. While dealing with Early Childhood Development (ECD), a man cannot be as effective as a
female because it is even difficult for them to handle small kids. Therefore the field of ECD
specially moves around females to take part in the teaching capacity.

Following personal characteristics of females make them perfect for teaching profession:
• Females are good in academics as compared to males, where as males are more towards
technical side i.e. practical rather than theory.
• They can handle kids easily, due to their motherly nature.
• They understand kid's psychology better than males.
• Females are more convincing and have good communication skills.
• Females are comparatively more responsible than males, and teaching, being a profession of
character building, requires responsible people.

Other than the above mentioned personal characteristics, teaching is best for females because of
many other reasons, for example:
• Students perceive female teachers as soft and kind in nature as compared to male teachers thus
they feel free to talk to female teachers.
• Teaching is best suitable for a woman's life due to the fact that females have other family
commitments and engagements.
• Due to several reasons females require career breaks and teaching profession allows it thus
making it best fit.
• Social prestige associated with teaching is what makes this a best profession for females.

Teaching as a female profession is now becoming popular in many cultures and with the passage
of time it is becoming even more prominent. This profession has so many things to offer to a
woman like satisfaction, money, respect, protection, no travel and maximum opportunities to
learn new and modern things. This profession is recommended to all females if they have an
ability to communicate well and can convey their message perfectly. Moreover while planning to
join this profession one should keep in mind that it is a holy profession - a profession of prophets,
thus females should try to give their sincere contribution in developing human lives and thus
while earning money, earn some virtue as well.

The salary of any profession is very important to be able to attract new people into the profession.
Students who study in various colleges opt for courses that they can complete and earn high
salary. In the teaching profession, many people do not opt for the profession for the sake of the
salary. Almost 75% of those who want to become teachers, do so because they are interested in
teaching and making a difference in the life of those whom they are teaching.

In spite of the high ambition of the teachers, salary is also very important for those in this
profession to be able to sustain themselves and their family. The salary of the teachers in India
varies between state to state and also in the actual qualification of the teacher. If a teacher has
done her basic qualification, the salary may be less.
If the person has completed post graduate education in the relevant subject, then their salary is
more.Teachers in schools earn much less than teachers in colleges. The teachers in schools are
controlled by their school board that decides the salary if the school is a private school. If the
school is a government school, then the particular state government decides on the salary for the
teachers working in these government run schools.

Actual salary:

The government school teachers who have just joined the government service earn about 15,000
rupees in a state like Tamil Nadu. In a state like Bihar, the same teacher would earn about 8000 to
10000 rupees. If the same teacher had completed the post graduate education, then the teacher
would be earning about 25,000 to anything like 50,000.

In a private school, the salary variation can be widely varied depending on the people studying in
the school and the location of the school. In small schools in very small towns, the teachers who
have just completed their education and are working may earn only about 3,000 rupees. The same
teacher if in a city with a big school can earn anywhere between 8,000 rupees to 12,000 rupees.

The wide variation in the salary of a teacher in different private schools depends on the fee that is
collected from the students. The salary also depends on the standard maintained in the schools.
Though various regulatory bodies are present in each state to control the cropping up of
unauthorized schools, many schools are started by people, who later bribe the government
officials to recognize the schools.

The salary may be widely varying for teachers in various schools, but they work with the same
kind of commitment where ever they work. They give off their best to ensure that their student
gets a good education. This is because most of the teachers get more satisfaction in the
achievement of their students rather than in the salary that they get.

The governments of all states should try to regulate the salary to be at par with each other as this
will make teachers to work in all parts of the country. When the salary in some states are very
less, the teachers start moving to greener pastures when they are not able to sustain on the salary
that they get.

EXPORT PROCESSING ZONES:

Export Processing Zones (EPZs) can be summarized as a unit bearing clusters of specially
designed zones of aggressive economic activity for the promotion of export.
Globalization has seen a dramatic growth in production chains which now stretch around the
world. Export processing zones (EPZs) house many of the enterprises involved in those chains.
There are at least 2,000 EPZs in the world today, employing some 27 million people. Between
60% and 90% of zone workers are women, often young and in their first job. The way these
women experience work differs markedly from that of their male counterparts, because women
also have domestic responsibilities and occupy socially determined "traditional" positions which
complicate their working lives. However, the lack of gender sensitivity on the part of policy-
makers, administrators, employers and even trade unions, means that the special situation of
women zone workers is not taken into account. Thus, they are adversely affected by gender-
neutral policies which, in practice, discriminate against women.
A day in the life of an EPZ working mother A typical mother working in a typical EPZ
has to rise hours before her shift at the factory begins, because she has to prepare food for
 the household and care for the children. She may then have to walk a long distance to
reach public transport, or even walk all the way to work. So, by the time she gets to work,
she is likely to be tired even before she starts her intense 10-hour work shift. She may
well not have eaten breakfast and consequently may lack the energy to sustain the output
her supervisor expects.
If the machine she operates breaks down she has to call a male technician to fix it. While
she is idle she loses out on the piece-rates and production bonuses she would normally be
able to obtain. The technician has many people waiting for their machines to be fixed and
so he might offer to fix her machine first if she agrees to perform a sexual favour.
If she has a daily quota to reach in order to earn the minimum wage, she may have to
spend two or three extra (unpaid) hours to finish her work, and if the factory is falling
behind in filling orders the workforce may be ordered to work overtime.
This affects both male and female workers, but in general the males do not have to feed,
clean and take care of a household. If the extra hours result in her leaving the factory
after dark she may be exposed to physical danger, and could have difficulty obtaining
transport home. Such 16- to 18-hour days take their toll, and the absenteeism and
turnover rates of female zone workers is high. Many burn out and leave after five or six
years of zone work. Others marry, have children, and are unable to resume a working life
because their domestic responsibilities are too demanding.
Zone administrators and employers are aware of the problems posed by absenteeism, labour
turnover and poor productivity, but are often at a loss as to how to deal with them. One obstacle
which needs to be overcome is the lack of a gender perspective, without which it is difficult to
appreciate the real nature of the problem; namely, the double burden of work and family
responsibilities which women workers often have to bear, and the socially defined limits to their
education, training and career opportunities. Such a gender perspective would equip policymakers
and practitioners alike with the analysis necessary to ensure that women are able to reconcile their
work and family responsibilities, and that they receive the access to the training and career
opportunities they presently lack.
One example of particular relevance to women is child care. In many EPZs around the world
women have difficulty finding suitable facilities for their children while they are at work. This is
a time-consuming, expensive and stressful demand on working mothers. In some cases the
mother is obliged to stop working altogether to care for the children, depriving the family of her
income and the employer of an experienced worker. If zone authorities and employers combined
their resources they could establish or support day-care centres which would ease the burden on
working mothers and encourage them to return to work after childbirth. Some zone enterprises
have established small crèches within the factory premises, while others have supported
community-based facilities.
Another important area of concern is training, both vocational and life-skills training. In many
EPZs the women are involved in simple processing or assembly tasks and receive only a
minimum of training. In the worst cases this means that a woman may work in a garment factory
for five years and not know how to make the complete garment, because she has performed only
one repetitive function. This means that she does not have a skill which she can transfer to
another type of work. As a result, she may leave zone employment with little chance of finding a
job elsewhere. It is essential that EPZ employers be offered incentives to train workers, and that
zone administrators provide facilities for ongoing training. If life-skills is also provided, women
workers leaving the zone may be able to set up independent income-generating activities based on
the skills acquired during their stay in the zone which would also generate employment.
The ILO is currently preparing a manual which will seek to raise awareness about the special
situation of women workers in EPZs, and highlight best practices in dealing with the problems
they face.

SEX WORKER:
A sex worker is a person who works in the sex industry. The term is usually used in reference to
those in the sex industry that actually provide such sexual services, as opposed to management
and staff of such industries. Some sex workers are paid to engage in sexually explicit behavior
which involve varying degrees of physical contact with clients (prostitutes, escorts, professional
dominants); pornographymodels and actors engage in sexually explicit behavior which are filmed
or photographed.

Causes:

Most of the research done by Sanlaap ( Sanlaap is an Indian feminist non-governmental

organization, established by Indrani Sinha in 1987 in Calcutta ) indicates that the majority of sex
workers in India work as prostitutes due to lacking resources to support themselves or their
children. Most do not choose this profession out of preference, but out of necessity, often after the
breakup of a marriage or after being disowned and thrown out of their homes by their families.
The children of sex workers are much more likely to get involved in this kind of work as well. A
survey completed in 1988 by the All Bengal Women's Union interviewed a random sample of
160 sex workers in Calcutta and, of those, 23 claimed that they had come of their own accord,
whereas the remaining 137 women claimed to have been introduced into the sex trade by agents
of various sorts. The breakdown was as follows:

• Neighbour in connivance with parents: 7

• Neighbours as pimps (guardians not knowing): 19
• Aged sex workers from same village or locality: 31
• Unknown person/accidental meeting with pimp: 32
• Mother/sister/near relative in the profession: 18
• Lover giving false hope of marriage or job and selling to brothel: 14
• Close acquaintance giving false hope of marriage or job: 11
• "Husband" (not legally married): 3
• Husband (legally married): 1
• Young college student selling to brothel and visiting free of cost: 1

The breakdown of the agents by sex were as follows: 76% of the agents were female and 24%
were males. Over 80% of the agents bring young women into the profession were known people
and not traffickers: neighbors, relatives, etc.
In India, prostitution itself (the exchange of sexual services for money) is legal but related
activities such as soliciting sex in a public place, kerb crawling, keeping
a brothel, pimping and pandering are illegal.
Prostitution is currently a contentious issue in India. In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child
Development reported the presence of 2.8 million sex workers in India, with 35.47 percent of
them entering the trade before the age of 18 years.The number of prostitutes has doubled in the
last decade.
According to a Human Rights Watch report, Indian anti-trafficking laws are designed to combat
commercialized vice; prostitution, as such, is not illegal. A sex worker can be punished for
soliciting or seducing in public, while clients can be punished for sexual activity in proximity to a
public place, and the organization puts the figure of sex workers in India at around 20 million,
with Mumbai alone being home to 200,000 sex workers, the largest sex industry centre in
Asia. Over the years, India has seen a growing mandate to legalize prostitution, to avoid
exploitation of sex workers and their children by middlemen and in the wake of growing
HIV/AIDS menace.

AIDS:

Mumbai and Kolkata (Calcutta) have the country's largest brothel based sex industry, with
over 100,000 sex workers in Mumbai.It is estimated that more than 50% of the sex
workers in Mumbai have HIV. In Surat, a study discovered that HIV prevalence
among sex workers had increased from 17% in 1992 to 43% in 2000.
A positive outcome of a prevention program among prostitutes can be found
in Sonagachi, a red-light district in Kolkata. The education program targeted about
5,000 female prostitutes. A team of two peer workers carried out outreach activities
including education, condom promotion and follow-up of STI cases. When the project
was launched in 1992, 27% of sex workers reported condom use. By 1995 this had
risen to 82%, and in 2001 it was 86%.
Reaching women who are working in brothels has proven to be quite difficult due to
the sheltered and secluded nature of the work, where pimps, Mashis, and brothel-
keepers often control access to the women and prevent their access to education,
resulting in a low to modest literacy rate for many sex workers.
Consistently high HIV infection rates among sex workers (50% or more among
Mumbai's female sex worker population since 1993),coupled with lack of information,
failure to use protection, and the migrancy of their clients, may contribute to the
spread of AIDS in the region and the country.

POLICE WOMEN:

Why women are not allowed to get into this sector:

Considered to be a department for men

Social and cultural factors
Home makers and not decision makers
Physical strength
Complicated situations
Problematic Department

Reasons for the increase in recent years:

Increase in the level of education

Necessity of women police
As a counselor for women and children
Government rule
Ranking of women in the department
To continue with the legacy

Problems faced by them in this sector:

Suppression of women
Thought to be inferior
Wrong decision makers
Night duties
Supportive role

WOMEN AUTO DRIVERS:

Problems faced by them:

Not socially accepted

Bad drivers
Lack of encouragement
Lack of financial assistance

AGRICULTURAL SECTOR:

Over the years, there is a gradual realization of the key role of women in agricultural
development and their vital contribution in the field of agriculture, food security, horticulture,
processing, nutrition, sericulture, fisheries, and other allied sectors. Women form the backbone of
agriculture, in India, Comprising the majority of agricultural laborers, women have been putting
in labour not only in terms of physical output but also in terms of quality and efficiency. Women
are critical to the well-being of farm households. Aside from raising children, women are
expected to prepare all meals, maintain the homestead, and assist in crop and animal production,
all the while tending to the general health of their families. Perhaps, ironically, it is because
women have so many responsibilities that they have been over-looked by agriculturalists and
policy makers – it has been more convenient to label men as farmers and women as child raisers
and cooks. In truth, women are involved in all aspects of agriculture, from crop selection to land
preparation, to seed selection, planting, weeding, pest control, harvesting, crop storage, handling,
marketing, and processing. Whatever the reason for this neglect, the importance of developing
farming technologies relevant to women has only recently been recognized.

Rural Women form the most important productive work force in the economy of majority of the
developing nations including India. Agriculture, the single largest production endeavour in India,
contributing about 18% of GDP, is increasingly becoming a Female Activity. Agriculture sector
employs 4/5th of all economically active women in the country. 48% of India’s self-employed
farmers are women. There are 75 million women engaged in dairying as against 15 million men
and 20 million in animal husbandry as compared to 1.5 million men.

Beyond the conventional market-oriented narrower definition of ‘productive workers’, almost all
women in rural India today can be considered as ‘farmers’ in some sense, working as agricultural
labour, unpaid workers in the family farm enterprise, or combination of the two. Moreover,
several farm activities traditionally carried out by men are also being undertaken by women as
men are pulled away into higher paying employment. Thus, Rural India is witnessing a process
which could be described as Feminization of Agriculture. Most of the problems faced are because
of the lack of recognition by family members and society and also, it has been found that there
has been an increasing trend of the male members of the family vacating the agricultural job and
moving to the urban areas for a higher paid industrial job, and thus leaving the entire agricultural
job to the woman. The woman very often finds it difficult to get things done because she hardly
gets respect and also finds it hard to balance the work with the bringing up of her children and
domestic household work. Because of this, there has been a rising trend of debts.

NURSING WOMEN:
Research with male nurses and students reveals a number of barriers against men in nursing.
Nursing continues to be viewed as women's work, a profession supporting the stereotypical
feminine traits of nurturing, caring and gentleness, in contrast to masculine characteristics of
strength, aggression and dominance.Traditional representations in the media of nurses as angels,
battle-axes, bimbos, sex symbols and doctors' handmaidens only perpetuate the feminine image
of nursing. The U.S. Department of Labor in the Occupational Outlook Handbook describes the
qualifications needed for nurses as, "Nurses should be caring, sympathetic, responsible, and detail
oriented,”traits often thought of as more maternal and feminine than masculine.

Furthermore, gender-biased presentations of nursing are common in all aspects of health care and
the media. For example, women in nursing are viewed as simply "nurses," but men are typically
qualified as "male nurses," suggesting men are different and not in keeping with societal
norms.The consideration of nurses as junior docs-"almost physicians," who settled for nursing
because they couldn't hack medical school doesn't help interest more men either.

Men inside the profession report workplace discrimination, saying certain job areas are not open
to them. Female colleagues can sometimes perceive them as muscle, helpful to have around when
something heavy, difficult or violent needs to be dealt with. Men nurses report needing to be
careful about what they say (not appear chauvinistic), how they act (not appear chivalrous), and
how they touch colleagues and patients (not sexual).Both male nurses and students express
concerns about the feminization of nursing traditions, such as milestones in nursing education
(pinning, capping, graduation ceremonies) or annual celebrations of Nurses' Week. Men also
relay a tension between being expected to be assertive and assume leadership responsibilities and
being viewed as "ladder-climbers." Sadly, men in nursing say they are sometimes viewed as
effeminate and even homosexual by those outside the profession, especially other men.

Other barriers for men include pay and issues associated with being a minority While entrance
salaries for nurses are quite good, the potential for increased earnings tapers off over time and
does not keep up with wage increases in other professions. Male nurses and students also report a
sense of marginalization and discrimination that is common among minorities.Unfortunately,
nursing schools have done a poor job in the past of recruiting and enfolding male students into the
education experience.

What can be done to overcome these barriers? The number one reason men are drawn toward
nursing is the same reason women become nurses-to help people. This point can and should be
acknowledged in recruiting men into nursing. Other top reasons men chose nursing are: the
ability to make a meaningful contribution to society, upward career mobility, geographic
mobility, financial security, good benefits, and flexible scheduling. Nursing has excellent and
unique selling points that need to be emphasized to men (and women!!) making career choices-
multiple career options, location flexibility job security and financial well-being. Through 2020,
more new jobs will be created in nursing than in any other occupation in the U.S., and job
opportunities are expected to be "very good." Stereotypes about nursing need to be confronted,
especially with high school and college guidance counselors. It should be noted that certain
clinical and administrative practice areas can be quite appealing to men because of the risks,
stress and respect inherent in working in these venues. Schools of nursing also need to be more
inclusive of men in their recruitment and socialization of students.
DOMESTIC HELP:

Domestic help in India is considered to be one of the most denigrating and humiliating
jobs without any social security or decent wages. Today, almost every household in India
has domestic help for cleaning, washing or cooking. These people have usually travelled
from rural areas in search of jobs to the towns and cities. Most are women and young
teenagers who are trafficked into this kind of employment. This sector is totally
unorganized with few or no laws regulating their employment conditions.

Majority of these women toil away with no fixed working hours and manage their large
families as well. we forget that they are also human beings and they have a right to their
basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter and along with it have a right to equal
protection by the laws of our land
Shonali, a 20 year old from Sundarbans , West Bengal , joined work at the age of 17. She
was brought by her uncle to the city to work and send back the money every month. She
gets a small corner in the kitchen to sleep in. Has no clothes except the ones brought with
her from her village. She cleans cooks and serves the 8 person, 7 bedroom two floored
house on a monthly sum of six hundred rupees. If she falls ill, she is given no respite
from work till she recovers.
There are many like her, many younger than her working in houses ten times bigger ,
mistreated frequently, criticised and forced to work for over 15 hours in a day. Many are
part time but a large number reside in the house in which they are employed as most of
them have left their villages in search of work. Most of these people have huge families
to support back in their village and send back almost all their earnings. For them life is a
struggle and constant pressure to take care of their loved ones with no time to live for
themselves.

These women are part of the growing informal sector that has no fixed hours of work or
fixed wages. There is no security of tenure as a worker may come back from her holiday
only to find that someone else has taken her place. She often does not get a weekly off or
any paid holiday. The threat of sexual harassment is an ever-present one.
90% domestic workers in India are women, girls or children ranging from ages 12 to 75
and it is estimated that 25% are below the age of 14. Domestic workers take on the job
due to unsteady domestic circumstances at their own households, e.g male and rural
employment, sole breadwinner of the family, abusive or alcoholic husbands, etc. The
overall claim to the reason of work is the adverse conditions of poverty and the failure of
the government to eradicate or make the situation better.
Many of these young girls and women, are trafficked to cities from states like West
Bengal, Orissa and Jharkhand. The source districts are some of the poorest in the country,
inhabited by minorities, mainly scheduled tribes. Many of these girls and women are
lured by agents in the villages with incentives of a good pay and life.