This article has been written by Ms. Aditi Mishra, a 4^th Year B.Com. LLB (Hons.) student from Institute of Law, Nirma University.

It is a fundamental human right to have gender equality. Though there has been progress, as economic, social, and sustainable development improve, women and girls throughout the world still do not completely enjoy equal rights and their potential. In addition, despite decades of progressive initiatives, there is still a significant degree of inequity in workplaces all around the country when it comes to gender equality in businesses and workplaces. Organizational structures, procedures, and practices all exhibit gender disparity, which is a complicated phenomenon.

To exemplify, some examples of gender equality in workplaces ~

• Unequal pay: This is one of the most pressing examples of sexism in the workplace.
• Unfavourable recruitment strategy: This can include questions about whether a female candidate intends to have children, or suggesting in your job specification that the role is more for men.
• Different opportunities: Wherein the business has career progression opportunities that favour men over women.
• Redundancies: Terminating a female employee for making a claim of unequal treatment at work.
• Bias: Showing preferential treatment towards male colleagues over female ones, such as in promotions or day-to-day conversation.
• Sexual harassment: An act of gross misconduct, this behaviour towards men or women can have serious consequences.
• Holding sexist views: Promoting outdated views about men or women, such as outdated gender stereotypes.

These are a few instances of how there are gender disparities in the workplace. Additionally, the nature of gender disparity might differ greatly between men and women. As a result, it’s critical to maintain vigilance and establish clear expectations for employee behavior in and around the workplace.

Let’s now examine this idea of gender disparity in the context of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Goal 5 of the 17 SDGs, which aim to improve the world, mentions “Gender Equality.”

Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.

Now, every development initiative must take into account the demands of all people, including those who traditionally don’t have a voice in decision-making, in order to be sustainable and effective. Because of this, establishing gender equality is essential to ensuring sustainable development.

In addition to being a fundamental human right, gender equality is also a precondition for a society that is stable, affluent, and sustainable. Over the past few decades, there has been progress: more girls are attending school, fewer are being coerced into early marriages, more women are holding elected office and other leadership posts, and laws are being changed to promote gender equality.

Despite these advancements, there are still many obstacles to overcome: 1 in 5 women and girls between the ages of 15 and 49 report having experienced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner within a 12-month period; discriminatory laws and social norms are still prevalent; there is inequality in the workplace.

Expanding economic growth, fostering social progress, and establishing more stable and equitable societies are all made possible by empowering women and girls. Women and children both gain from women’s economic empowerment. It is crucial to the social and economic progress of families, communities, and countries. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN also emphasize gender equality as being relevant to tackling a wide variety of global concerns and emphasize women’s empowerment as an essential development aim in and of itself.

The realities of workplace gender inequity are unmistakable. The figures are unsettling to read even now. A poll by Young Women’s Trust in 2018 found:

23% of women at work have faced sexual harassment.

Only 8% of them have reported it.

43% of mothers faced maternity discrimination.

52% of women face mental health issues at work, compared to 42% of men.

Such a discrepancy shows that there are still inequality problems at hand, notwithstanding the government’s recent intervention.

Because companies throughout the world do not prioritize advancing women in the workforce, the gender leadership gap will probably continue until 2073 if no corporate action is taken.

This is supported by a recent IBM research that surveyed 2,300 CEOs and business people from various industries on their efforts to bridge the gender leadership gap. Despite data showing that diversity and gender equality result in increased earnings, 79% of respondents indicated they haven’t given attaining gender equality among executives a high priority.

The report also revealed that just 18% of senior leadership positions were occupied by women. The depressing fact, according to IBM’s Chief Marketing Officer Michelle Peluso, is the consequence of businesses failing to understand how gender equality benefits their bottom line.

However, IBM referred to a certain group of businesses as the “First Movers.” First Mover businesses, which made up 12% of the study’s sample, undertook specific activities for promoting gender equality. Compared to just 38% of other businesses, all of these corporations concur that gender-inclusive organizations had greater financial performance. Additionally, compared to only 9% of other businesses, every First Mover company stated that elevating women into leadership roles was their top business objective.

What can be learned from First Movers is how crucial it is to establish quantifiable objectives and lay out a methodical plan for inclusion across the business. This includes hiring, rewarding, fostering, retaining, and promoting women, among other things.

The survey suggested a number of actions businesses should take to promote gender equality. They include implementing flexible work schedules and sponsorship opportunities for women, including gender equality into the business purpose statement, and using performance metrics to develop women in the organization.

Today, businesses that prioritize women’s empowerment are more successful financially. According to research, supporting women and girls may boost output, organizational performance, return on investment, and customer happiness.

More and more corporate executives are realizing the value of women as decision-makers, shoppers, business owners, employees, and caregivers. To foster conditions where women and girls may succeed, they are altering their policies, programs, and projects.

It is considered that businesses must, at the very least, respect the rights of women and girls by enacting anti-discrimination and anti-sexual harassment policies.

Additionally, businesses may develop inclusive business strategies and finance initiatives for the economic empowerment of women. They can collaborate with groups to promote women’s rights and push for laws promoting gender equality. Such efforts to advance women’s rights need to be an addition to, not a replacement for, respecting such rights.

Additionally, encouraging a just workplace climate guarantees the highest potential level of corporate efficiency. In turn, this guarantees that the country’s economy may expand naturally. There are no unjust obstacles impeding development.

To help foster gender equality, companies can:-

•  Provide instruction to increase awareness and encourage ethical conduct.
•  Examine the employment requirements to determine whether any restrictions prevent women from advancing to more senior positions.
•  Offer child care centres, family-friendly regulations, and childcare vouchers.
•  Put successful women in your organization in the limelight both internally and through the media, and invite senior women to serve as mentors.
•  Establish equitable compensation and work/life standards, and make sure management completely support all of their staff, regardless of gender.
•  Check to see if a harassment policy is in place.

The government has put many policies into place to guarantee workplace gender equality. The Indian Constitution already provides for some rights. Now, it is up to every one of us to close the gender gap in the way that men and women are treated at work and treated generally.

Aishwarya Says:

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