In a country where women constitute around 48 per cent of the total population, they are encouraged to step out of their homes and lead a successful professional life just like their male counterparts. Things have changed a lot—we have professions like nursing and others that are dominated by women and they are also leaving their marks in other fields, which were earlier ruled by men (Avani Chaturvedi recently created history as India's first female fighter pilot). However, according to some women, they still face challenges in the work place. We bring to you a few challenges faced by women who also shared how they overcome those hurdles at workplace.
“I once went for an interview where I could not make it to the final round because the employers thought I might go on a maternity leave soon because I was recently married. One of my friends too faced the same problem once. So, in the next job interview I made it clear that I should not be judged based on my marital status or a presumption that I might be planning a family soon. The interviewer liked my honesty and I was selected based on my experience and qualification,” said Tara Mehta, a manager at a talent acquisition company.
“My boss once commented that women have good persuasion skills and that was the reason he wanted me to lead the business development departments and head all client meetings. What made me angry was he never considered my other skills but judged me based on a whim he had about women. Just to prove that he was wrong, I worked hard on all projects and ensured that I got good feedback from all. Then I left that job after starting my own venture and told my boss that besides the rumoured ‘female power of persuasion’ I also had other skills!” said Shalini Sharma, an entrepreneur.
“After I came back from a maternity leave, I was transferred to another location. Although the official notice mentioned that it was a regular transfer, one of my seniors divulged the real reason—they feared that having a baby might hamper my performance at work. I took that as a challenge and proved them wrong by performing even better in the new location,” said Aarti Shah, a public sector employee.
“Last year when everyone was discussing the topic of ‘period’ leave and whether it should be implemented or not, one of my colleagues commented that we should think twice before hiring a female employee next time. It was really rude and I asked him politely not to discriminate women based on their physical difference. Some of my colleagues also supported and praised me for pointing that out in a respectful manner,” said Sweta Joshi, a bank employee.
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