Almost two years into the covid-19 pandemic and the Indian working women of today are more exhausted than before. The work from home culture has intensified their responsibilities inside and outside the home. Despite various campaigns being run across channels, it is traditionally expected that a woman fully takes care of household responsibilities. This conventional imbalance at home puts women in the crossroads during their career when it comes to promotions, new opportunities, appraisals and more.
Despite this, women executives are stepping up to support employee well-being and diversity, equity, and inclusion activities, but their efforts go unnoticed. As a result, official unemployment in India is deficient, at just a little more than 5%. In a middle-income country, everyone searching for a job works in some capacity, making India the bottom third of countries in terms of unemployment rates. While overall unemployment rates are lower for women than for males, women with more than a secondary education face alarming unemployment rates of 17%, roughly double that of similarly educated men.
The figure is even more significant for educated urban women. In India, a second indicator the labour force participation rate becomes particularly relevant for women. The new working norm has undoubtedly provided numerous options for many women, particularly those unable to work due to other family obligations. In addition, it is now possible for women to work from home without relocating their lives. However, women continue to face hurdles in the first job market as they are not given priority as their male counterparts when it comes to getting hired.
According to a McKinsey report published in July 2020, female job loss rates owing to covid-19 have been around 1.8 times greater than male job loss rates internationally. Women face a challenge today as several are resuming their careers and seem to feel the lack of equitable opportunities in the workplace. Moreover, getting investors to raise funds to build a start-up or for business expansion is not as easy for women compared to men. What’s crucial is that people acknowledge, promote, and encourage ways in which women can retain and flourish in their respective jobs. As mentioned, providing equitable opportunities by opening the first job market for women from rural India will help them enter the workforce. These efforts, along will up-skilling and training, will enable women to understand and utilise their full potential to flourish in their respective job roles.
Action is required to enable women to access job possibilities provided by the transition of economies and enterprises to net-zero energy. Moreover, we must change how companies choose to invest in profitable development opportunities for women viewing women as a vital asset that can significantly shape any business’s future progress and financial growth.
A CHANGE IN INCREASED REPRESENTATION OF WOMEN IN THE WORKPLACE
The epidemic catalysed change in the increased representation of women in senior leadership and executive positions and a stark reminder of some hurdles to women’s labour-force involvement. When considering the future of work, we should consider investing in meaningful development opportunities to create a hybrid working environment that allows women to thrive. However, there is still some stereotyping about what women can do. Circuitous thinking by everyone, especially women, is becoming increasingly crucial. Increasing women’s participation in the net-zero transition will be critical to closing the employment gap.
Despite the added stress and tiredness, women are rising to the occasion as stronger leaders and accepting the additional work compared to men who work at the same level. It’s evident today how women in India are making aggressive efforts to support their colleagues and the workforce to advance their endeavours to promote diversity, equity, inclusion in their respective workplaces.
RESTORING GENDER EQUITY & WORK-LIFE BALANCE
For numerous women, the covid-19 pandemic has increased their obligations at work and responsibilities at home. Several have had to quit the workforce because they are exhausted. Employers must grasp what women require at this vital juncture. Create ecosystems that are conducive to the holistic growth of their women workforce.
The future of employment for women is bright, and everyone can support their respective organisations, allies, mentors, governance, and women themselves. Listed below are a few things an employer can incorporate to ease the pressure on women in the workplace.
ADAPTING FLEXIBLE WORK FROM HOME MODEL
The new normal has introduced hybrid working models in business across sectors. The same will continue to be crucial in expanding women’s employment opportunities. For example, technology has eased how we business operations. The same can get implied when women choose to work in companies. Today working from anywhere is possible with the help of technology. In addition, these solutions will provide flexibility to individuals who require it long after the pandemic has passed.
CURTAIL THE BURNOUT DUE TO WORK
Companies must take decisive measures to address the burnout women experience daily. Furthermore, they must acknowledge and honour the female leaders propelling change. Additionally, they must engage to curate and introduce HR policies echoing the profound cultural effort required to establish an environment in which all women feel respected.
FOCUS ON COMPREHENSIVE GROWTH & MENTAL HEALTH
Organisations must work cohesively to establish ecosystems that promote holistic growth in 2022 and beyond. Hiring the most incredible talent is not enough. It is also necessary to nurture the careers of women employees through chances for continual growth and learning, training, talent mobility, up-skilling, mentoring, and networking. Women must likewise prioritise their development and make the most of these changes.
Progress can get accounted for in workplaces when employers today hold themselves accountable, so as a business leader, set measurable and attainable goals to improve your workplace for female employees. While conferring solutions, they should be deliberate. By setting goals, employers can assist keep everyone on track to achieve them.
Additionally, it’s also critical to equip employees with cutting-edge training, resources, and tools to help them realise their career goals amid the current workforce transition. Giving your staff tools to help them grow will result in higher retention rates and a more professional organisation. Mentorship will play a significant part in women’s career growth.
Women demand formal mentorship, are willing to advise other women, and benefit substantially from having a mentor at work. Furthermore, during the last year, organisations have struggled to retain talent and prevent burnout a challenge that got exacerbated for women in the workforce, who have borne a disproportionate share of the pandemic’s weight. Mentorship for women must be a primary focus for businesses in 2022. Companies that fully recognise that their female employees require training and mentoring to establish a formal programme to build policies that help women mirror their full potential will result in more engaged and productive staff.
The author is Co-Founder of Incluzon