Dear Friends, Miles to go! Eight years ago, the country enacted a codified law aimed at providing protection to women against sexual harassment at the workplace. It was welcomed by everyone. After so much time, it would not be unreasonable to examine the efficacy of the law along with organizational and societal mindsets that help determine the final outcome.
Many research studies and surveys have been conducted in the past on the subject to understand the pulse and the ground reality. A few cumulative findings are that a major chunk of women who work in the unorganized sector are either not aware of the forums available for reporting sexual harassment or the societal mindset discourages them from speaking up and fighting back. There is a lack of support systems required for women working in the unorganized sector to take such matters to a logical end.
In the organized sector, most cases are underreported. Organizations prefer to make paper compliances with related laws rather than strengthening the grievance redressal mechanism. In many cases, organizations press the panic button and punish the alleged perpetrator hastily without going into details of the complaint, causing a chilling effect on male employees. Research studies have also found that in the absence of correct data compilation by government agencies, it is difficult to assess the effectiveness of the law.
The law has its own limitations and loopholes. For workplaces with fewer than 10 employees, any complaint of sexual harassment has to be submitted to the local committee, which is only one in each district. It seems impractical for a woman from a far interior place of the district to come repeatedly and fight for her complaint at the district headquarters level. Also, like women, men also need such laws to get protection from harassment.
It cannot be denied that after the POSH Law came into existence, the number of cases of sexual harassment has increased. Working women have started speaking up, which is a good sign. There are enough laws dealing with sexual harassment in the country, but the answer to the question of why the problem of sexual harassment still exists at the workplace is simple. No law can guarantee the elimination of the crime for which it is enacted.
Sexual harassment is a crime that violates the fundamental right of gender equality and life with dignity, but the biggest hurdle in fighting such a menace is the deep-rooted societal mindset influenced by patriarchy, where women from an early age are taught to tolerate things and habituated to accept them as a part of life. So, the family and societal mindset need to be changed. Girls from childhood need to be taught and encouraged to fight back against any injustice or inappropriate behavior meted out to them. Naming and shaming have to lose relevance in such aspects. So, women have to continue speaking up forcefully.
The other side of the coin that can't be overlooked is also the possible abuse of this protection given by law to women. The cases of abuses by women have also come to light, which has marred workplace sanctity. Women have to be careful in this respect and desist from abusing the right of protection given to them by law for some short-term gains or teaching a lesson to someone at the workplace. Certainly, in the end, women will be losers in such situations.
This edition's cover story is an attempt to understand whether the POSH law has delivered and met the objectives for which it was enacted along with other dimensions of the socio-legal complexity. Experts in the subject are here to enrich readers with their wisdom and experience. If you like it, let us know. If not, well, let us know that too. Happy Reading!
Regards, Anil Kaushik Business Manager - HR Magazine B-138, Ambedkar Nagar, Alwar - 301001 (Raj.) Mob.: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy-Reasons] www.businessmanager.in Location: Delhi, India
Many research studies and surveys have been conducted in the past on the subject to understand the pulse and the ground reality. A few cumulative findings are that a major chunk of women who work in the unorganized sector are either not aware of the forums available for reporting sexual harassment or the societal mindset discourages them from speaking up and fighting back. There is a lack of support systems required for women working in the unorganized sector to take such matters to a logical end.
In the organized sector, most cases are underreported. Organizations prefer to make paper compliances with related laws rather than strengthening the grievance redressal mechanism. In many cases, organizations press the panic button and punish the alleged perpetrator hastily without going into details of the complaint, causing a chilling effect on male employees. Research studies have also found that in the absence of correct data compilation by government agencies, it is difficult to assess the effectiveness of the law.
The law has its own limitations and loopholes. For workplaces with fewer than 10 employees, any complaint of sexual harassment has to be submitted to the local committee, which is only one in each district. It seems impractical for a woman from a far interior place of the district to come repeatedly and fight for her complaint at the district headquarters level. Also, like women, men also need such laws to get protection from harassment.
It cannot be denied that after the POSH Law came into existence, the number of cases of sexual harassment has increased. Working women have started speaking up, which is a good sign. There are enough laws dealing with sexual harassment in the country, but the answer to the question of why the problem of sexual harassment still exists at the workplace is simple. No law can guarantee the elimination of the crime for which it is enacted.
Sexual harassment is a crime that violates the fundamental right of gender equality and life with dignity, but the biggest hurdle in fighting such a menace is the deep-rooted societal mindset influenced by patriarchy, where women from an early age are taught to tolerate things and habituated to accept them as a part of life. So, the family and societal mindset need to be changed. Girls from childhood need to be taught and encouraged to fight back against any injustice or inappropriate behavior meted out to them. Naming and shaming have to lose relevance in such aspects. So, women have to continue speaking up forcefully.
The other side of the coin that can't be overlooked is also the possible abuse of this protection given by law to women. The cases of abuses by women have also come to light, which has marred workplace sanctity. Women have to be careful in this respect and desist from abusing the right of protection given to them by law for some short-term gains or teaching a lesson to someone at the workplace. Certainly, in the end, women will be losers in such situations.
This edition's cover story is an attempt to understand whether the POSH law has delivered and met the objectives for which it was enacted along with other dimensions of the socio-legal complexity. Experts in the subject are here to enrich readers with their wisdom and experience. If you like it, let us know. If not, well, let us know that too. Happy Reading!
Regards, Anil Kaushik Business Manager - HR Magazine B-138, Ambedkar Nagar, Alwar - 301001 (Raj.) Mob.: [Phone Number Removed For Privacy-Reasons] www.businessmanager.in Location: Delhi, India
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