A

SEMINAR REPORT
ON
WOMEN SAFETY AT WORK PLACE
SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
DEGREE OF
BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
SESSION (2016-2017)

SUBMITTED TO: SUBMITTED BY:

MS BHUMIKA SHARMA KHUSHBU KUMARI

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

SUBMITTED TO
ICL INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

SOUNTLI
(KURUKSHETRA UNIVERSITY, KURUKSHETRA)
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Gratitude is the hardest of emotions to express and one often does not find adequate words to
convey what one feels and trying to express it

The present project file is an amalgamated of various thoughts and experiences .The successful
completion of this project report would have not been possible without the help and guidance of
number of people and specially to my project guide .I take this opportunity to thank all those
who have directly and indirectly inspired, directed and helped me towards successful completion
of this project report.

I am also immensely indebted to my project guide, MS Bhumika Sharma, Assistant

Professor, ICL-IMT, for her illumining observation, encouraging suggestions and constructive
criticisms, which have helped me in completing this research project successfully.

I also acknowledge with deep sense of gratitude and wholeheartedness to several other people
who also deserve much more than a mere acknowledgement for their exemplary help and
cooperation intended to me by them.

KHUSHBU KUMARI

BBA 1ST SEM

 PREFACE

Practical training is an important part of management courses. Theoretical studies in

classroom are not sufficient to understand the functioning of complex and large sized
organization, managerial climate and the real problems coming in the way of management of
Man, Material, Machines and Money.

Practical training supplements the theoretical studies i.e. it covers what is left uncovered in
the classrooms. It offers an exposure to real practice of management in business organization.

It exposes student to an invaluable treasure of experience.

In the forthcoming pages an attempt has been made to present a comprehensive report
concerning different aspects of my study. The overall knowledge gained by me will be
reflected in the report itself.

KHUSHBU KUMARI

BBA 1ST SEM

 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that, the project entitled WOMEN SAFETY AT WORK PLACE assigned
to me for the partial fulfillment of BBA degree from Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra. The
work is originally completed by me and the information provided in the study is authentic to the
best of my knowledge.

This study has not been submitted to any other institution or university for the award of any other
degree.

KHUSHBU KUMARI

BBA 1ST SEM

 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Khushbu Kumari has completed the project entitled WOMEN SAFETY
AT WORK PLACE under my supervision. To the best of my knowledge, the report consists of
result of the empirical study conducted by the student. In my opinion, the work is of requisite
standard expected from an BBA student. Therefore, I recommend the same to be sent for
evaluation to the university.

MS BHUMIKA SHARMA

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
 CONTENTS

CHAPTER-1 1-24

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER -2 25-26

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

CHAPTER-3 27-31

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

CHAPTER-4 32-44

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

CHAPTER-5 45-46

FINDINGS

CHAPTER-6 47-48

LIMITATIONS

CHAPTER-7 49-50

RECOMMENDATIONS

CHAPTER-8 51-52

CONCLUSION

BIBLIOGRAPHY
ANNEXURE
 INTRODUCTION

Over the past three decades, workplace has become a much more diverse
environment. With women representing 24.4 per cent of the total workforce in India,
personal security has become central to their physical, intellectual, emotional, economic
and spiritual well-being. To quote Michelle Bachelet, first woman Special Envoy to the
UN Secretary General, Gender equality must become a lived reality and how better to
do it than ensure that women are safe at the workplace, by creating an atmosphere
conducive to increased participation of women, positively encouraging and supporting
them.

The suggested guidelines for the safety for women at the workplace are broadly
categorized under four heads:

1. Physical

2. Environmental

3. Organizational

4. Educational
Each of the above heads has recommendations which are required and aspirational.

PHYSICAL

This focuses on the physical security of women employees in an organization. It

ascertains the safety of female employees, whilst they are on the job/ inside office
premises the workplace needs to be secure and women assured of basic safety on
the job and in office.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Identification documents (driving license, photo ID, address proof, Finger prints to
be collected from drivers, security guards and all casual staff

24x7 operational CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) cameras at vital locations or

places, such as entry/ exit, common passages, etc in the factories and industries.
However, this should not impinge the modesty and privacy of the employees

Where CCTV is not possible, manned entries/ gates and security deployment at
the site/ office/ location 24x7 or depending upon the kind of working hours

ASPIRATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

Installation of electronic doors allowing access to the work area only to

authorized employees / staff
 High security fencing to discourage human trespassing in factory/office premises
or campuses

Security guard or a colleague to accompany the driver in the cab, if a woman

staff working in a night shift is either the first to be picked up or last to be dropped

GPS based monitoring of cabs/transport vehicles with panic buttons

SMS Alerts / Information Systems to be designed/installed

A thorough risk assessment of the neighboring area is recommended to ascertain

that stringent measures are in place to mitigate any security risk

Mobile Applications to be installed on employee phones for increased tracking

and safety measures
ENVIRONMENTAL

The environmental aspect complements the physical aspect of security and helps
maintain a safe and secure standard in any premises. This plays a vital role in ensuring
the basic yet critical aspects of safety of employees.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENT

Clearly displayed emergency contact numbers and a designated officer(s)

available round the clock to be contacted in emergency

Well lit work areas, staircases and parking lots till the last woman employee
leaves the site

Separate and secure toilets for women close to their work station

Strict surveillance of visitors. Details of all the visitors such as name,

organization, address, purpose of visit, person visited, time in and time out to be
recorded in a register. This should apply not only to the visitors coming for
business purposes but also to courier staff, delivery boys etc

Provision of company transport for women working in night shifts both to and
from the workplace

Hiring of cabs/ transport vehicles on a regular basis only from established

agencies
ASPIRATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

Security staff and drivers to be employed only after police verification or to be

recruited from reputed agencies that have such measures in place

Compliance and Audits / Random Checks / Patrolling to be done periodically

including breath analysis of cab drivers

24x7 transport helpdesk for drivers & staff / family members with dedicated
emergency cab on standby for exigencies

Emergency Response Systems to record and support any emergencies across

group of employees

Tracking of Ad-Hoc and No-Show staff transport users to drive more discipline in
transport usage
ORGANIZATIONAL

It is for the employer to create a positive atmosphere at the workplace where a woman
is encouraged to come to work, secure in the knowledge that she will be treated with
dignity, respect and will be protected from harassment.

Minimum Requirement

At the time of orientation, women in organizations to be made aware of their

rights, facilities and actions that they can initiate regarding sexual harassment

To have a Code of Conduct agreement in place - to be affirmed annually by

employees and vendors with clear defining behavioural norms especially for
males with female employees

Internal compliance measurement on the awareness of the policy

Payment of salaries directly into bank accounts to avoid any kind of harassment
by supervisory staff over subordinate women employees/casual women
employees

Setting up of a sexual harassment committee reporting to the Managing Director

or a senior member of the management and headed by a woman
 Strict disciplinary action against those found violating the code of conduct to
ensure that it is not repeated

Organizations with pan-India presence to have regional heads as members of

the committee

The majority or at least two women to be on the committee, one from the staff
and one from management

Every office to have a representative reporting to the committee

Every complaint verbal or written to be documented and investigated promptly

by the committee and appropriate action must be taken irrespective of the person
being a senior, supervisor, colleague, staff, customer or vendor

Smaller organizations to be made to appoint an external sexual harassment

committee

Women employees to be assured of speedy redressal, confidentiality of their

complaints and protection from reprisal

ASPIRATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

Employee Feedback and Action on Company transport via Emails and E-

transport tools
EDUCATIONAL ASPECT

The awareness of women employees of their company policies on sexual harassment

and gender discrimination and the more they are encouraged to report all instances of
discrimination without fear, the greater would be their feeling of security and
empowerment.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENT

Awareness and training on security and safety. Dos & Donts while traveling by
company cabs, Emergency contacts, Police help lines, company contact points

Awareness of the company policy on sexual harassment, on gender

discrimination or gender biased approach and the complaint process

Regular reminders of the ethical values of the company, through emails, posters,
sessions, etc

Provide training to all women employees and educate them about their rights and
facilities Sensitisation of male employees through training sessions

Training of all women staff on staying alert and being better prepared
 Training of supervisors and other staff on how to respond to complaints of sexual
harassment/gender discrimination

ASPIRATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS

Self-defence classes to be organized at the workplace or sponsored by the

organisation

Posters advocating gender sensitivity to be displayed prominently

All organizations to have a system in place to monitor their activities on gender

sensitization and security and safety issues

On-line basic security awareness training where women employees are guided
on how to act when faced with sexual harassment

Drivers Training on Safety and etiquettes done twice a year with a special focus
on mindset /behavioral change
PUBLIC SPACES: NO SAFETY FOR WOMEN

The problem however, is not always office infrastructure. Sometimes it is as basic

as travelling back home. Ironically some of the most significant cities of our
country display completely different attitudes in this context. While public
transport is not a problem in most of Mumbai, there are conveyance-stricken
cities such as Delhi and Bangalore, where travelling alone late night on a local
bus only infuses fear. Try taking a bus back home from Gurgaon late at night.
People look at you as if an alien got onboard, Sheetal exclaims.

The National Capital Region especially, seems to be decades behind when it

comes to infrastructure that could add to womens safety. The abduction of a girl
from her cab in Gurgaon recently shook up the authorities. A safety
audit conducted shortly after revealed the glaring lacunae in infrastructure that
aided crime against women. The bizarre idea of making organisations seek
permission from the authorities before asking their women employees to work
late night showed how helpless our government is in this context.

EMPLOYERS RESPONSIBILITY: HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?

For those who work in corporate environments, there is some measure of

protection, while others who work in areas such as education, entertainment,
retail, or in the unorganised sector often have to fend for themselves.

Richa Khanna Bose, Deputy Manager, Human Resources at the Hindustan

Times (HT) publication details her companys stringent policies. According to
her, HT follows various policies to ensure security of its women employees. The
most important one would be of pick up and drop of women from residence at
odd hours accompanied by a security guard. In extension to this we have
policies regarding travelling outside the city and the stay at hotels. There are
emergency contact numbers and useful transport numbers circulated to ensure
awareness among female employees.

Nalina Mittra, Senior Executive, Human Resources at Landis+Gyr, an energy

management company said, We ensure that a guard always escorts female
employees in cabs post 8:00pm. When asked about the changes required to
make work places for secure for women, she said, A tough sexual
harassment policy and creating awareness about it is extremely important for all
companies. Other than that, forums for women to come and talk about their
 issues and self defense workshops for women would be quite helpful in making
female workers more secure.

There is no doubt about the fact that many organisations try their best in keeping
their female employees safe. Nonetheless, the responsibility they shoulder is so
big that corporate measures alone wont suffice. What is really required is a
commitment from our state and city governments to invest in public spaces, and
a better understanding from architects and builders too on how work places can
be built in a manner more conducive to safety.

CONCLUSION

There was a time when women would have to fight for their right to employment.
Fortunately, today this fact stands as our past. Unfortunately, our present isnt any better
either. The deplorable figures of crime against women in our country confirm the
challenging and insecure lives women live even today.

A tiny fact that recently caught our attention is how working late hours in office creates
security hassles for women. The obvious question here being, why should an effort
made to improve your work life, endanger your very existence?

Lets face it; working late nights has become a prerequisite in many industries. While
men burn the midnight oil without such troubles, women tend to do it reluctantly. Sheetal
Aneja* is a management trainee in an MNC in Gurgaon. In the six months of her
employment, shes had to stay back for work at least three days in a week. Its a
complex situation, she says. There are times when you realise that there are hardly
any people around. Theres a lull, the alleys get lonely and even the caf closes after
8, she adds.

While her companys office environment itself is not a problem, the larger building that
contains offices of several other organisations becomes a deserted place. Are there
enough security guards around, I ask. There are a couple in our office, but they cant
be at all places in the entire building right?

Come to think of it, those extravagant architectural marvels that we call commercial
buildings are a perfect place for crime, if intended. While your own office may be a
secure area, common places such as washrooms, smoking areas and cafs may pose
threat. If you too feel uneasy being alone in places such as these, its best to have some
company as far as possible. With greater acceptance of telecommuting, leaving the
office along with colleagues and catching up on unfinished work at home is another
option.

One simple measure that companies could employ is to employ female security guards
as well in offices, especially in the area around washrooms and create a basic pantry
inside the office premises, so that employees do not need to go out for dinner when
working late. We know that this isnt really a treatment for the disease of crime against
women, but it would at least keep the symptom of attack at bay.