Working women in India have to consciously make plans to ensure their safety, and reassure family members, in order to be able to work outside the home.
Taking steps to ward off a violent attack – and reassuring their families they are safe while at work and on their commutes – is invisible labour that is central to their work life, the Wall Street Journal reports.
A Pew Research Center survey in 2019 found 40% of Indians think it is better for a marriage for men to provide while women take care of the home and children. This is significantly higher than the global median of 23%.
Some women withdraw from work as soon as economic circumstances permit, while others prefer lower-paid work options close to home over travelling to more distant locations.
Economists and researchers say the low share of Indian women in the workforce is costing India economic growth.
In August a trainee doctor in the city of Kolkata was raped and murdered in a hospital. The 31-year-old was found dead in a seminar hall of the hospital after she went on break during a night shift. A volunteer at the hospital has been arrested. The killing prompted protests by women across the country.
Only 30% of women in India aged 15 to 64 were in the labour force in 2022, according to the International Labor Organisation.
Conservative values lead many families to discourage women from working outside the home.
Ten years ago the gang-rape of a 23-year-old woman on a moving bus led to an overhaul of laws dealing with crimes against women. However, patriarchal attitudes haven’t changed much and are at the root of frequent violence against women, in and out of the home.