Sikkim topped the women workplace index, Delhi at the bottom

We often hear that size doesn’t matter and small things bring about the biggest changes. This is what happened when the tiny state of Sikkim emerged at the top spot with the best workplace conditions for women in India. Delhi, the national capital on the other hand happened to be ranked the worst for women to work in.

A report, jointly prepared by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a top American think-tank, and Nathan Associates, gave Sikkim the max marks that were 40 and Delhi received just 8.5 marks, reflecting what is wrong in the capital.

"In something of a surprise, Delhi came last in our Index, due to its relatively low justice and workforce participation scores; its continued formal restrictions on women working at night in a wide range of sectors; and its lack of any incentives for female entrepreneurs in its industrial policies," the report said.

The ranking was based on four main factors: legal restrictions on women's working hours in factories, retail, and the IT industry; the responsiveness of the state's criminal justice system to crimes affecting working women, such as sexual harassment; the number of women workers in the state as a percentage of total workers; and the number of incentives the state's startup and industrial policies offer women entrepreneurs.

"But the tiny northeastern state of Sikkim is the breakthrough state for women in the workplace, thanks to its high rates of female workforce participation, lack of restrictions on women's working hours, and high conviction rates for workforce crimes against women (albeit on a small sample size)," the report said.

Sikkim is followed by Telangana (28.5 points), Puducherry (25.6), Karnataka (24.7), Himachal Pradesh (24.2), Andhra Pradesh (24.0), Kerala (22.2), Maharashtra (21.4), Tamil Nadu (21.1) and Chhattisgarh (21.1).
“All Four states (Sikkim, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu) have removed all restrictions on women working at night in factories, retail establishments and the IT sector,” the report said.

These restrictions were removed as a result of court order in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.

Maharashtra missed the perfect score by just a point as the state doesn’t allow women to work after 10 pm in retail establishments.

India has the world's lowest rate (24 per cent) of female workforce participation as many states have laws limiting women's working hours, and Indian women face harassment in the workplace and while commuting.
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