Women in public sector banks

General Studies Paper 2

Context: Recently, data shared by the government shows increased participation of women on the payrolls of public sector banks.

About

• According to data shared by the Minister of State for Finance, in the Lok Sabha
  • The proportion of women employees has increased over the past year in most public sector banks.
  • In three public sector banks women employees constitute 30% or more of the total work force.
  • Indian Overseas Bank had the highest share of female staffers in their total staff strength at 36%
• Cabinet committee on Empowerment of Women in its fourth report (16 th lok sabha) considered the working condition of women in public sector banks. It had the following suggestions
  • It found representation of women in high grades low and asked the government to treat it as an issue of high priority.
  • It called on the government to revisit policies regarding  posting /transfer of women to distant places.
  • It found low awareness among women employees regarding the venues available to them for prevention of sexual harassment at work place.

Women’s Labour force participation 

• Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) shows that India’s Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) has fallen to just 40% from an already low 47% in 2016.

• The main reason for India’s LFPR being low is the abysmally low level of female LFPR. According to CMIE data, as of December 2021, while the male LFPR was 67.4%, the female LFPR was as low as 9.4%.
• India ranks 135 among a total of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2022, which slipped from 112th position in 2020.

• According to the World Bank. From 30.7% in 2006,the proportion of working age women taking part in paid work dropped to 2% in 2021,

Reasons for Low Participation

• Lack of opportunities:Rural distress has affected women the most as income-generating opportunities have disappeared. The lack of suitable job opportunities is acute for women in rural India.
• Women education: India is one of the most climatically vulnerable places. All the improvements done over decades could be erased in an instance by Natural calamity; the poor public infrastructure and limited state capacity make the task difficult.
• Rising income among urban population:It has removed the economic incentive for women to work.
• Unpaid work: Most Indian women are deeply engaged in running households, which is unpaid work, and does not count as being part of the workforce.
• Demand-supply gap in employment:The country has not created enough jobs and the demand-supply gap in employment opportunities results in women deciding to stay at home.
• Working Conditions: The non-availability of white collar jobs, disproportionate long hours and lesser job security restricts the job opportunities for educated women in India.

Government Initiatives

• The Maternity Benefit Act entitles a woman working in the organized sector to 26 weeks of paid maternity leave. With regard to childcare, the Act has created a provision to provide for crèche facilities in every establishment having 50 or more workers.
• The Protection of Women against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, defines sexual harassment at the workplace and creates an organisational mechanism for redressal of complaints.
• Equal Remuneration Act, 1976; Factories (Amendment) Act, 1948 also seek to provide equality and fairness in women working conditions.

Way Forward

• Government policies should also start targeting women workers in the unorganised sector which houses the largest number of females and has little to no penetration of schemes.
• Apart from this Provision of amenities and basic infrastructure such as childcare facilities will go a long way in welcoming the entry of women into the labour force