Daycare To Cabs: 5 Women Tell Us Facilities That Companies In India Must Offer

In order to create a healthy work-life balance and a safe environment in offices, employers should take supportive initiatives. We have often read articles on how women are expected to create a balance between their professional and personal lives, while making time for self-care.

Women have to jump through multiple hoops in a day to make things work. If it doesn’t then we have to find an office that is closer to our home, where we can commute quickly and easily, and have a day shift ideally. If there is a night shift, women look for other alternatives because of safety issues.

Maintaining a work-life balance might be easier for unmarried people, but it gets hard to juggle everything around when a woman gets married and expectations keep piling up. But raising a family, which is the future of humanity, takes an entire village. Without help from relatives, friends, and employers alike, it is simply not possible to sustain such lifestyles. Many of these restrictions and responsibility also end up pushing women to postpone having children, which can have other repercussions.

That’s why we thought of asking women what facilities and amenities they would like their companies to offer in India so that it becomes a little easier for them to focus on work better and worry less about other things.

Work From Home

Payal Banerjee (25) said as a working woman it sometimes becomes difficult to cope with multiple things all at once. She stressed on the safety issues and told us that companies must ensure proper surveillance, cab facilities, and security personnel.

She also pointed out that offices must provide work-from-home or flexible working hours to new mothers. It would help women take care of their kids while working, and this way they won’t feel guilty for leaving their kids at home.

Space To Express Milk

Tanya Malik (30) suggested companies must provide a designated space for lactating mothers to express milk. Most of the offices in India do not offer this private space to new mothers, making it difficult for them to maintain a sufficient supply for the baby.

Malik said it is essential for breastfeeding mothers to express milk at regular intervals to maintain a connection with the baby. It will also prevent them from experiencing leakage.

Cab Service

Neha Bora (27) mentioned that it would make it easy for women if they get cab service. Most women find it difficult to commute if the office shifts are at odd hours, especially at night.

Another amenity she suggested was alternate work-from-home or a hybrid work environment for working mothers. While it is easy to ask women to do an equal amount of work as men in order to get equal opportunities, raises and pay, we cannot deny the fact that women carry the burden of unpaid household chores.

Whether it is attending to her family, taking care of kids or catering to the needs of guests. She is expected to magically keep everyone happy at home while standing on her toes in the office. It is not fair to burden women with expectations without lending them a helping hand.

Flexible Work Hours

Pallu Singh (28) said, “It goes without saying that a flexible work culture not only encourages a healthy work-life balance but also impacts progress in a much more profitable way from a career standpoint.”

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Daycare

Ankita Jain* (34) said she would like Indian companies to add a day care facility and allow working mothers at least two short breaks to check on their kids. Most women take a long pause after delivering their babies because not everyone can afford help or has family support.

It is only recently that work from home was made available in many companies. Since we have started to return to normalcy, companies have become strict about working from the office again.

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Having a daycare facility will allow women to keep an eye on their kids. They can work without worrying about how their child is being treated at home. Lactating mothers can even attend to their children during breaks, helping them breastfeed at regular intervals.

It might seem like an additional expenditure, but it can actually help women employees focus better on work. It would not hamper their productivity and drive them to be more efficient in the office.

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Disclaimer: * refers to names changed on request