Working Paper 1 / 2011 The Bureau for Gender Equality supports the implementation of the ILO’s Policy on Gender Equality and Mainstreaming. This entails offering advice to constituents and ILO staff on measures to help ensure that policies, Gender Equality legislation, programmes and institutions are more gender-equitable. Such measures include ratifying and implementing relevant labour standards, increasing the number of women in decision-making positions, promoting and Social Dialogue women’s entrepreneurship and paying attention to situations where women are particularly vulnerable in the labour market. in India The Bureau reports directly to the ILO Director-General who keeps the Organization’s Governing Body and International Labour Conference appraised of contemporary gender issues in the four strategic objectives of employment, social protection, social dialogue and rights at work. It coordinates the ILO global Gender Network, which comprises Senior Gender Specialists and gender focal points in the field offices and at headquarters in Geneva. It carries out participatory gender audits (PGAs), technical cooperation projects, knowledge Kamala Sankaran sharing and awareness-raising activities to help strengthen the capacities of Roopa Madhav constituents, ILO staff and other stakeholders to address the gender dimension in their areas of work. The Bureau participates in United Nations inter-agency activities and initiatives aimed at promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women. These include the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and especially MDG 3 on gender equality, the Beijing Platform for Action and the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). The Bureau contributes to Expert Group meetings to prepare the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and participates in the yearly CSW thematic discussions panels. The Bureau supports gender mainstreaming in “Delivering as One” initiatives at the country level and in United Nations Development Assistance Frameworks (UNDAFs). The Bureau liaises with civil society groups, academic institutions and a broad range of actors committed to gender equality. In cooperation with Industrial and Employment Relations Department ILO Bureau for Gender Equality Route des Morillons 4 Bureau for 1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland Gender Tel +41 22 799 6730 Fax +41 22 799 6388 Equality www.ilo.org/gender [email protected] WP.1/2011 Gender equality and social dialogue in India Kamala Sankaran and Roopa Madhav Industrial and Employment Relations Department and Bureau for Gender Equality International Labour Office • Geneva January 2011 Copyright © International Labour Organization 2011 First published 2011 Publications of the International Labour Office enjoy copyright under Protocol 2 of the Universal Copyright Convention. Nevertheless, short excerpts from them may be reproduced without authorization, on condition that the source is indicated. For rights of reproduction or translation, application should be made to ILO Publications (Rights and Permissions), International Labour Office, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland, or by email: [email protected]. The International Labour Office welcomes such applications. Libraries, institutions and other users registered in the United Kingdom with the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP [Fax: (+44) (0)20 7631 5500; email: [email protected]], in the United States with the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923 [Fax: (+1) (978) 750 4470; email: [email protected]] or in other countries with associated Reproduction Rights Organizations, may make photocopies in accordance with the licences issued to them for this purpose. Sankaran, Kamala; Madhav, Roopa Gender equality and social dialogue in India / Kamala Sankaran and Roopa Madhav ; International Labour Office. - Geneva: ILO, 2011 1 v. ISBN 978-92-2-123909-3 (print) ISBN 978-92-2-123910-9 (web pdf) International Labour Office gender equality / social dialogue / collective bargaining / women workers / equal employment opportunity / sex discrimination / India The designations employed in ILO publications, which are in conformity with United Nations practice, and the presentation of material therein do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the International Labour Office concerning the legal status of any country, area or territory or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers. The responsibility for opinions expressed in signed articles, studies and other contributions rests solely with their authors, and publication does not constitute an endorsement by the International Labour Office of the opinions expressed in them. Reference to names of firms and commercial products and processes does not imply their endorsement by the International Labour Office, and any failure to mention a particular firm, commercial product or process is not a sign of disapproval. ILO publications can be obtained through major booksellers or ILO local offices in many countries, or direct from ILO Publications, International Labour Office, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland. Catalogues or lists of new publications are available free of charge from the above address, or by email: [email protected] Visit our web site: www.ilo.org/publns Printed in Switzerland Foreword Gender equality and social dialogue are both fundamental values and cross-cutting issues for the International Labour Organisation. In 2009 the International Labour Conference concluded its discussion on “Gender equality at the heart of decent work” by reaffirming that social dialogue and tripartism are essential policy tools to advance gender equality in the world of work. This paper is a part of a comparative research project whose objective is to demonstrate that gender equality and social dialogue are mutually beneficial and their promotion should go hand-in-hand. Despite several studies on each topic separately, there is a knowledge gap worldwide on how gender equality at work is advanced through social dialogue. This topic is examined both from qualitative and quantitative aspects: participation on an equal footing of men and women in social dialogue, in particular in the national tripartite bodies, as well as within government units, trade unions and employers’ organisations, and gender equality issues on the agenda of social dialogue, including collective bargaining. This study provides valuable information on India’s progress to improve its equal employment opportunities for women and men through its legislation, policies and social dialogue. Notwithstanding several achievements, the Indian society is still marred by inequality, in particular based on gender and social origin. National tripartite forums in India are not yet fully representative of the workforce, nor do they deal with gender equality issues in substance. Despite the challenge that the large informal sector represents for collective bargaining, the authors have presented some innovative practices of negotiation with cooperatives representing informal workers, in addition to a pioneering analysis of several branch collective agreements that contain provisions related to gender equality. The national consultation to discuss the study, which took place in New Delhi in 2010, reviewed the institutional setting to promote gender equality in India and in particular how tripartite social dialogue could play a role. The discussion was a starting point to encourage the social partners in India to take initiatives to promote more balanced participation of men and women in tripartite social dialogue forums, as well as to include gender equality issues in national discussions concerning the labour market and collective agreements. The paper is the result of collaboration between the Industrial and Employment Relations Department, the Bureau for Gender Equality and the ILO Decent Work Technical Support Team for South Asia. Kamala Sankaran, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi, and Roopa Madhav, independent law researcher, prepared the national study. Angelika Muller coordinated the comparative research project and national studies. Particular thanks for comments and assistance are expressed to Line Begby, Raphael Crowe, Marleen Rueda, Reiko Tsushima, and Jyoti Tuladhar. This paper was developed with support from the Governments of Norway and Sweden. Jane Hodges Tayo Fashoyin Director, Director, Bureau for Gender Industrial and Employment Equality Relations Department iii Contents Foreword .............................................................................................................................. iii Abbreviations ...................................................................................................................... vii 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 2. Methodology .................................................................................................................. 1 3. Impact of socio-economic developments on gender...................................................... 2 4. Gender and the labour market ....................................................................................... 6 5. Common forms of gender discrimination in the workplace .......................................... 8 6. The legal framework dealing with equality and discrimination .................................... 9 6.1 Rights combating