What It Means To Be A Working Woman In India

Before you sit down to read this article, pause and quickly recollect your day- mommies.

What all did you have to wrap up at home and for your kids before you actually got down to enjoy that cuppa coffee or set off for work? The list is endless. It is 2019 and unlike the West, the concept of a ‘hands-on-dad’ is still something that is new and not-so-popular in India. Wait- have you heard of the term ‘hands-on-mom’? No. That’s because every mom is expected to be hands-on and that’s hardwired in her DNA.

Indian business tycoon Anand Mahindra recently put up a heartwarming message saluting all working moms for everything they do and how they juggle the impossible. He shared a cartoon that depicts the hard-hitting reality of what working moms face versus dads.

One of the best pics we have seen in recent times-thank you @anandmahindra! A hard-hitting reality on #momlife and how we have to juggle a million things to achieve the impossible #WorkLifeBalance #parenting https://t.co/rdZPCEbbNH

— Kidsstoppress.com (@Kidsstoppress) February 5, 2019

A recent news report published in Livemint states that the percentage of women entering the job market in India is seeing a sharp decline and that is worrying. The commonest reason attributed to this decline is childcare and the lack of safe alternatives for women to leave their child behind. Daycares and playschools are mushrooming in every street corner but how many of them are really effective? There is a lot that parents need to keep in mind before zeroing in on a daycare/preschool or a babysitter.

The report states that working women on an average in Tier 2 and 3 states like Mizoram and Chattisgarh are higher than in leading metros like Delhi.
The percentage of women dropping formwork or taking a long sabbatical was attributed to the maternity phase and subsequent childcare.
According to the results of labour force surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), the percentage of working women in Delhi was at a shocking 11.7%, while it was at 32% for Maharashtra and 33% in Karnataka- that boats of the leading metros in the country.

There was another Gallup report a couple of years ago on what working women actually want to do. It stated among moms employed full- or part-time, 54% said they would prefer to stay home, while only 40% said they prefer to work outside the home. The family would continue to be the top priority for women over career and when it comes to a trade-off situation, it is often a women’s career that takes the beating.

As a country what are we doing to help women get back to their jobs? How are we facilitating their needs? Do we need more practical solutions like mandatory daycare at workplaces or do we need a paradigm shift in the way dads think about sharing the load? Let us know your take on this issue.