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‘They don’t even allow us to go to the toilet’

Shameful tales were revealed when women working in Bangalore’s garment factories started speaking out about the conditions they work in.

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Shameful tales were revealed when women working in the city’s garment factories started speaking out about the conditions they work in.

A round-table meeting was held on Monday on preventing violence in the city’s export-oriented garment factories. Women who work in these units narrated how they are meted out inhuman treatment.

One of them, Geetha, said they are often not allowed to go to toilet on the grounds that production will wall. “We don’t drink water (when we are at work) so that we don’t have to use the toilet,” she said. Yamuna, a factory worker with BRFL Unit 5, pointed out that they are harassed when they speak up for their rights. She described how she is being victimised by her company for taking up an issue a few years ago. She said that even now she faces humiliation for that and is made to sit idle in the factory.

Many other women workers had the same complaint as Geetha, of being victimised for speaking up. They said if they raise their voice against harassment, their department is changed, they are not given any work, and are humiliated too. Some women complained that their company’s managements harass them if they learns that the workers are members of trade unions.
One woman highlighted that though they are provided pick-up and drop facility, it is in a goods vehicle that they are transported. Further, it was pointed out at the meeting that although garment industry is a women-dominated one—the ratio of women and men being 70:30—most of the heads are men. Some women said they did not know whom to complain about their problems.

‘Don’t misuse law’
After listening to the women’s woes, officials at the meeting said some things need to be handled informally as laws cannot be made for everything.
Sripad Balashetty, assistant labour commissioner, said while there are many laws to safeguard women’s interests, the members of the fairer sex should not misuse them to victimise someone else. He said cases of violations of human and civil rights have to be handled by the police and violations of labour rights have to be looked into by the labour department. He said the aggrieved women can approach the state commission for women too. There are about 900 garment factories in Karnataka, of which about 700 are in Bangalore Urban and Bangalore Rural districts alone.    inbox@dnaindia.net

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