Woman Power

Margaret Thatcher is reported to have said – If you want anything said, ask a man; if you want anything done, ask a woman.

Arvind Singhal in his article writes that India has after China, the second largest number of women in the workforce. An estimated 480 million jobs are being performed by women. Till recently, most of these jobs were largely relating to physical, menial labour. And rather than helping in the empowerment of women, added to their exploitation since they not only had to be a wife and mother and homemaker, but also a secondary wage earner having little or no control on utilisation of what they earned through their hard labour. A silent revolution has since begun.


So different from what it was in the late ‘60s. My mother wrote to my grandfather. I have an offer to work in a bank. The children are grown up and I have some time to spare. I am contemplating taking up the job. Her father, gently admonished her, your husband is a senior government officer, what will people think? That he is not earning enough to keep you and the children happy? ( My father’s salary to be honest, was really a pittance as were the salaries of that time). Is that the impression you want to convey? I do not think you are doing the right thing. And heeding his advice, my mother never took up the job.

By the time I grew up, things had begun to change. Girls were educated, and many went ahead to do their post graduation too. For few, it was to bide time till their parents found a suitable partner. Some of us were lucky, we were allowed to work. There were not many opportunities, and it was not easy,

Now, it is a different scene altogether. There are an equal number of women working in any given organisation. Not just soft skills. They have entered areas that were once exclusively a man’s domain . The first woman on the shop floor is reported to be Sudha Murthy ( wife of Infosys Technologies founder Narayan Murthy). In 1974, she was upset when an advertisement for engineers in Telco ( now Tata Motors) specifically barred women from the post. She sent off a letter in protest to J.R.D Tata, and with due credit to the great man, she soon received a call for an interview and thus became the first woman engineer in their organisation. Women have since proved they can get out of their offices, work at project sites, get their hands dirty and meet deadlines with ease. Late hours have not deterred their enthusiasm either. And their multi tasking abilities ( hitherto proved at home ) stand in good stead along with their inter personal skills.

A surge of women working in white collar jobs will have a great impact on a number of factors in the coming years especially in urban India. An increase in dual income households. Women with lesser time to devote to the home. An increase in demand for ready-to-eat meals, of third parties who can take up routine housekeeping roles, a requirement for nannies, cooks, for online shopping and home delivered goods. Products targeting women – like formal wear, financial services, grooming centres will be sure to mushroom. That would mean no waiting at the ‘chakki’ centre to have whole wheat ground to flour, no pulses to be soaked for the next day’s breakfast, no tamarind to be soaked, no nappies to be washed, no peas to be shelled, no queuing up outside movie theatres on weekends, thanks to a host of conveniences that were unavailable to us few years ago.

With more freedom and confidence, women will probably look at their role in the home differently. As it is ‘marriageable age’ has undergone a huge change, a few grandmothers themselves ( having probably been home bound at a very tender age and living their dreams through their granddaughters) recommend that the children work and attain some level of financial independence before they get married. How often we hear people say, she is just 22, let her work and enjoy life , why burden her with responsibilities, a husband and children? Which may be a good sign but consider the impact it will have – late marriages, fewer children. The dynamics of the family in India will definitely undergoing a change. How well, we adapt to the changes and yet not let go of our family values will remain to be seen.

I am sure it affects every family. My elder one is married, but says babies can wait. The younger one who has just begun her career, says marriage can wait. I have no problems either. But there are issues. I worry when the younger one is still at work late in the night. And I am getting older too. Would I have the same energy to step into the role of a grandmother with ease many years hence? Can the nanny substitute the grandparent? We’ll have to wait and see.

TYPTW

Does this seem like a Bollywood movie? Remember DDLJ? Well, TYPTW is Take Your Parents to Work . Some of the interesting concepts that HR groups in companies come up with. And of course, like a Hindi movie, I did go into flashback mode.

I remember the first day of school for the kids. It is always a very significant day for most parents - when the elder one went to school, surprisingly she shed no tears - Actually, I think our eyes were misty . The younger one, it was easier, we always had this feeling that the sister was there to take care, and she lived up to her role very well.


So, it began, all the trips to school, for the parent-teacher meet, the sports day, the annual day. And somehow the school had this uncanny knack of holding an important event on a day most inconvenient for the parents. But since we felt responsible, we put aside our work and made sure we were there to cheer them as they took part in the sack race, the spoon or lemon race, or their march past. The annual day used to be the worst. It was also unfortunate that their act was always towards the end and we faithfully went for all these till one such day, as we sat sweating and squirming in the uncomfortable seating that was provided, we realised, that our elder one's role in the particular play was that of a tree and with all the heavy makeup we could really not identify which tree she was! Slowly our interest in these programmes began to wane, and we did attended fewer of them, much to the disappointment of the younger one.


Well, anyway we did our best to be a part of their growing up years. Then came the time when the elder one completed her education and took up a job. And in a well known MNC. We were proud to watch the professionalism creep in. We were fortunate that company she worked at, organised a Family Day. Once again, we ensured that we finished work as soon as we could ( this time the scene was a little different, we had our own enterprise, there was no application for leave!!), and we set off to her workplace. The office was nothing like the places we had worked at! The ambiance so totally different. And like us there were so many families that went around. Our daughter sat at her desk, and enacted a bit of her daily role, while we gazed so proudly, just like all the other parents that day. And we went around with her as she showed us the breakout area , the canteen, the gym and so on... she had come a long way from the time my father had prepared her for the admission test for the school, all his efforts as he went on hhhh, hhhh, hhhh to make her get her to pronounce the letter 'h' and all she could muster was 'orse' instead of horse.

I do think the TYPTW programme is an interesting concept. A little peek into their adult lives, when we realise happily how they have developed into responsible adults. Our concern for them would never end. But it also signifies the time for us to get on with our lives as we had before they were born!

PS: And I had a double bonus too, when I saw the son-in-law at his place of work. He showed the wife and me around in his inimitable style!

On a serious note....

Work culture seems to have undergone a drastic change. I remember when we finished our postgraduate course. Of the sixteen of us, some got married, some waited to get married, some went abroad to study. There were few of us who remained - looking for a job. It was not uncommon for girls those days to have studied and then just stay back at home. No eyebrows were raised. It was not unusual at all. Jobs were rather scarce those days. Especially since they had to be within 10 km of home. There was this particular post that we all applied for at a well known research institute only to have our applications rejected. We were over qualified. But when luck struck, few of us did manage to get jobs. We did our best to retain them. We worked hard and really strived to do our best. And that has stood in good stead even now.

What is surprising therefore is that the same perseverance and sincerity is not evident in youngsters these days. Jobs are there aplenty. We never had these opportunities. However, the urge to learn is strangely missing.

Most of us do not have the good fortune of working out of passion. That is for the few lucky ones. It is true (even if most do not want to admit it) that we are working for money. Since we are compelled to work, life would be easier if only we made an attempt to do justice to our job .

Of the 24 hours each day, eight, are at the place of work. If we can make that substantial time into one of learning and developing a positive attitude, it would go a long way in improving the remaining part of the day.

I remember a colleague at the college I worked earlier. She quit her job and many years later I met her and found that she was a stockbroker. I remember asking her whether she found it difficult shifting to a totally different line. And what she told me has always remained with me. She said 'Education is never wasted. Even if you ever change your field, the experience that you would have gained earlier will always provide a good foundation'.

Be sincere and true in whatever you do. This will not just make you a better employee it would also make you a better person. For the sincerity would pass on to any task - personal or professional. I have spoken. AMEN.