TechECE

The very thought of improving the facilities in the workplace catering to the needs of women has to be welcomed and groomed, irrespective of the industry in question. The subject of matter, being IT industry only reinforces this notion.

There could be many a scale to judge the prosperity of a country-freedom of speech, literacy level, military power, GDP etc. But, a nation could attain true prosperity enriched with peace & happiness, only when the state of womanhood is enviable. Visionary leaders like Mahatma Gandhiji, Bharathiyar, Rajaram mohan roy knew the importance of women’s role in socio-political structure of the society and hence, lent their voice to emancipation of women from the evil clutches of the society. They strongly believed independence to the country could not be complete without independence to women. The economic scenario is no different from the political one and more than that both are complementary to each other.

Most of the industries are male-dominated in India and do not provide equal opportunities. IT Industry is unique in this sense. Unlike in other industries, women compete on equal terms with men. Those employed in software firms; enjoy more opportunities which have lead to their empowerment. There could be no second thought in the need of steps to improve facilities for women. The questions that remain are how and where to draw line between improving and pampering.

Late working hours have been a trend in the IT Industry. Especially in software industry, where the amount of work is equated to number of hours worked, women have problems in balancing both family and work. A strict law marking the working hours from 9 to 6 would ensure high productivity in the given short period, happy family life and put aside the safety concerns. But the call centre jobs demands its employees to work in night shifts for their US customer. In such cases, safety must be the top priority.

IT Industry, though boasts 20 years of existence, is a young industry with almost 90 percent of employees fall in 20 to 30 years old category. But, when it matures there would be a growing demand for crèche, children play space within the work place like some of the textile companies. In twenty years from now, IT parks would be built along with schools. This would complement the 9 to 6 rule. This would be a win-win situation for both the company and the employees. While the company would see its working mother smiling all the way to its office, the employees would think twice before quitting any company, thus reducing the attrition rates. Other things like maternity leave, special incentives would automatically fall into place.

Steps to increase the women’s participation are the steps to a healthy and exuberant nation. The days ahead would be interesting and the only thing that would mark Mother India’s face – happiness.