Flexibility on working mode a must for women staffers

Market leader Tata Consultancy Services recently called its employees to work from offices, ending the much-touted work from anywhere mode. Work from home (WFH) became popular during the Covid lockdown amid mobility restrictions. Such was the prevalence of this model that companies started designing future policies, taking it as a permanent trend. Experts opined that it would widen the talent pool as those residing in remote locations could also be hired. Women workers stand to benefit most from the WFH mode. Now that things are coming back to normal, companies are slowly abandoning the remote work model. Almost all IT firms are now following hybrid model wherein staffers have to come at least for a few days in a week to their offices. Companies are saying that it will help in checking the high attrition seen in the IT industry. However, TCS in its annual report revealed that the company is now facing high attrition among its women employees. "I would think working from home during the pandemic reset the domestic arrangements for some women, keeping them from returning to office even after everything is normalised," said the TCS top boss, indicating that women employees prefer the remote working model.

Notably, Indian IT industry is one of the largest employers of women workforce in India. According to NASSCOM, Indian IT and BPM (business process management) industry, employs around 1.3 million women, which is around 34 per cent of the total workforce. Moreover, over 24 per cent of them hold managerial positions. These facts indicate that women workforce forms the backbone of Indian IT industry. It is also seen that many women leaders have made it to the top in the global IT industry with India leading the show. It can be safely said that innovation in the technology industry will receive a setback if women employees don’t get conducive working environment. No doubt, Indian IT industry is considered as one of the best employers for women. This reputation can be further enhanced if a special policy on working mode of women employees can be framed. This argument seems logical as the socioeconomic environment of Indian society puts women in a disadvantageous position. Unless some positive affirmation with regard to working mode and conditions are taken, gender equality can never be achieved. Therefore, all stakeholders, including NASSCOM, should push for special dispensation for women employees. A policy with flexible working conditions for them is a must for maintaining the competitive advantage of Indian IT industry. Therefore, the return to work from office policy of domestic IT firms should be reconsidered with regard to women employees. This will go a long way in maintaining the diversity of the workforce. Abrupt end to work from anywhere model will not solve any purpose if it pushes women staffers out of the system. Rather, women employees should be given the choice of working in different modes. Flexibility is the need of the hour.