Manyboxes ticked, but miles to go

The corporate world has undergone significant changes during the past few decades. One of the most significant changes has been the inclusion, acceptance, and eventual growth of women in the workforce. However, even today, women continue to face challenges and struggles even in the well-structured corporate world; what to speak of their plight in the unorganised workplaces.

The fight for gender equality and diversity in the workplace is an ongoing one. Even though more and more women are joining the workforce, they still face challenges such as gender discrimination, unequal pay, and underrepresentation in leadership positions.

According to a study conducted by McKinsey & Company, women make up only 38 percent of entry level positions, 28 percent of Vice-president positions, and 21 percent of C-suite positions. This scacity in diversity can harm companies in several ways, including reduced innovation and decreased employee satisfaction.

Gender parity, or the lack thereof, is another significant issue. Despite several initiatives to close the gender pay gap, The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021 stated that it would take another 135.6 years to achieve gender parity.

The report also noted that the pandemic has widened the gender gap, with women being more likely to have lost their jobs and be impacted by the economic fallout. Achieving gender parity requires companies to be proactive in addressing issues such as unequal pay, unconscious bias, and skewed workplace policies that disadvantage women.

Work-life balance is another crucial issue that affects women in the corporate world. The pressure to juggle family responsibilities and work can lead to burnout, stress, and a lack of job satisfaction. The pandemic has highlighted this issue even further, with women being more likely to bear the brunt of childcare responsibilities and home-schooling. To address this issue, more and more companies need to implement policies such as flexible work arrangements, paid parental leave, and on- site childcare facilities.

In India, the status of women in the corporate world is a mixed bag. While there are examples of successful women leaders in various sectors in India, the majority of working women in our country continue to face challenges such as gender discrimination, unequal pay, and lack of representation in leadership positions.

This is particularly true in sectors such as liquor and hospitality, where the work environment is male-dominated, and women are often subject to harassment and bias.

A survey conducted by the Indian Women Network revealed that 80 percent of women in the liquor and hospitality sectors experienced sexual harassment in the workplace. Despite the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013, many women still hesitate to report incidents of harassment due to social stigma and fear of loss of jobs. Furthermore, women’s safety remains a concern in India’s hospitality industry, with reports of harassment and assault by customers, colleagues, and managers. This has resulted in calls for better workplace safety measures and gender sensitisation for employees to ensure that everyone is aware of how to handle such situations.

Notwithstanding these glaring omissions, in India, women have made significant strides in various industries, including the alcoholic beverages industry. During the last two decades or so, the alcoholic beverages industry in India has experienced significant growth, creating new opportunities for women to enter the sector.

Women have not only held (and holding) top leadership positions in alcobev companies in India, they have taken on roles such as Brand Managers, Sales Executives, and Sommeliers; bringing new perspectives and ideas to the industry.

More and more women are entering the alcobev industry, and some companies are actively working to promote gender diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.

For instance, many liquor companies, hotels and bars are implementing policies to promote equal pay for the same work, and more companies are appointing women to leadership positions.

But all said and done, there is still a long way to go before true gender equality is achieved in alcobev and other industries. To ensure that women have equal opportunities to succeed and are treated fairly in the workplace, companies must continue to work towards creating a more inclusive and women-friendly environment.

And, our society too has to shed its long-held biases.