Aon plc, a prominent international provider of professional services, has released the results of its Voice of Women Study India, the country's first and biggest poll of its type. Nearly 24,000 professional women from more than 560 companies have contributed to it in order to determine the realities of an inclusive workplace and their top workplace challenges.
According to the report, 90 per cent of Indian women working in corporate positions said they are willing to work longer hours, volunteer for difficult projects, and improve their skills in order to advance in their careers. However, 37 per cent of the women surveyed said they had encountered insensitive behaviour, and 42 per cent said they had encountered or could encounter bias at work. Working mothers experienced additional difficulties; 75 per cent of respondents reported a one- to two-year career loss following maternity leave, and over 40 per cent stated that taking maternity leave had a negative effect on their earnings and transformed their function to something they did not enjoy.
Additionally, compared to 17 per cent of women in entry-level positions, 34 per cent of women in senior management and leadership positions reported experiencing discrimination, indicating that bias increases as women advance in their professions. The survey also revealed that women employees in an organisation benefit from having women in leadership positions. Of the women who have prominent women leaders in their organisation, 41 per cent identified women leaders as role models, 52 per cent said it had a positive effect on their culture, and 53 per cent said they felt confident in their career progression. The feeling of unfairness for three important personnel processes—performance reviews, promotions, and compensation—was similarly lessened by the presence of female leaders.
Businesses in India must address gender concerns as they deal with the lack of skilled workers and negotiate an unpredictable business climate. The research makes it abundantly evident that women are more represented in the workforce when they have more positive experiences there. In order to remove obstacles to advancement and reframe policies that assist female employees at various times of their lives, businesses must intensify their DE&I efforts by actively listening to women in the workplace and using data-driven insights to guarantee they make informed decisions.