The state assembly recently passed The Factories (Karnataka Amendment) Bill, 2023, which among other things allows women to be employed in night shifts on factory floors, albeit with a long list of safety precautions.
In Karnataka, especially Bangalore, the garment sector is the biggest employer of women.
Pratibha R., President, Garment and Textile Workers’ Union (GATWU), said, “Night shift for women may work in the IT and hospitality sectors, but women working in the garments sector come from a social background that may not let them work night shifts. The situation at home is also not such that they can go home and rest the next day.”
Women workers believes this is a ‘Catch-22’ situation where they may lose their jobs if they refuse to work night shifts, even as they may be asked to quit by families.
Trade associations are also of the view that the consent clause in the Bill will provide no effective safety. The Bill makes it a transaction between the employee and employer, and does not even involve the Labour Department, which makes coercion easy.
