Document Type
Working Paper
Publication Date
2006
Abstract
The objective of this report is to explore sexual harassment of women in the health sector in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Specifically, it explores women’s perceptions of the occurrence of sexual harassment in hospital settings, and probes women’s own experiences of sexual harassment and incidents of sexual harassment in the hospital environment about which women are aware. The study also investigates the nature of action taken to seek redress, and the extent to which working women are aware of the complaint mechanism outlined by the Supreme Court. Findings confirm the persistence of sexual harassment in the workplace, the reluctance of women to invoke the complaints mechanism, and the ineffectiveness of existing complaints mechanisms in punishing the perpetrator. Findings also suggest that attitudes to sexual harassment in the workplace mirror society’s norms about sexuality and masculinity more generally. The study notes that what is required are appropriate implementation mechanisms that recognize the obstacles posed by power imbalances and gender norms in empowering women to make a formal complaint on the one hand and in receiving appropriate redress on the other.
Recommended Citation
Chaudhuri, Paramita. 2006. "Sexual harassment in the workplace: Experiences of women in the health sector," Health and Population Innovation Fellowship Programme Working Paper no. 1. New Delhi: Population Council.
DOI
10.31899/rh5.1030
Language
English
Project
Health and Population Innovation (HPI) Fellowship Program
Included in
Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons, Domestic and Intimate Partner Violence Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, International Public Health Commons, Women's Health Commons