5 Ways to Ensure Women’s Safety at the Workplace.
Women are more susceptible to the impact of unsupervised and unsafe environments at work. Their dignity and safety are already at a higher risk due to societal constraints. It is more challenging for women to pursue their career without restrictions as compared to their male counterparts.
While talking about unsafe workplaces, we are considering women from all backgrounds. From factory workers to the corporate environment, women must be safeguarded from threats which are not generally a major problem for their male counterpart. This will not only encourage more women to pursue their career, but also contribute to bridge the professional gap between men and women.
Here’s what you can do as an employer to make the workplace safer for women employees.
1.Physical Safety.
Installing CCTV cameras, cab service given by the company for providing pick and drop facility to women employees and unrestrictive late working hours are a few ways by which women’s physical safety can be ensured. By providing an assurance to safety, a lot of women also get the liberty to work freely without their families restricting them, again reducing professional gap between men and women.
2.Educating employees.
Educating employees about women’s rights as an employee in the workplace and initiating open communication about any kind of harassment of women in the workplace can help women feel understood and heard.
3.Clear no-tolerance policy.
Make sure that all your employees are aware of a clear no-tolerance policy against sexual harassment. Make your employees aware of all kinds of behaviour which constitute sexual harassment so that they know the boundaries of behaviour at the workplace. Doing this will ensure the understanding of the repercussions which any employee will face in case they cross any boundaries.
4.Setting up an internal complaints committee.
Set up an all-women internal complaints committee to cater to the complaints of sexual harassment on a more professional level. Make sure all your employees know about the process of registering a complaint and how an internal inquiry will be initiated against the accused employee. The powers of this committee should be made clear to all employees so that nobody thinks that they must put up with any kind of unprofessional behaviour at the workplace to keep their job.
5.Mentorship programs.
Some professional training and guidance to women employees can help them unlock their potential in a nurturing environment, bridge the gender gap and compete effectively in a place where women are assumed to be the weaker gender. Any kind of bias regarding intellectual capacity of the female gender can also be eliminated through this practice.
What are some other ways which you think can help make the workplace safer for women?
Let us know in the comments!
