Challenges for Rural Women Workers

• Mechanization of Rural Economy: As a result of the introduction of machinery, operations in the agricultural sector have become less labor-intensive, resulting in a reduction in working days to fewer than three months per year. Many rural women were compelled to emigrate and work as temporary construction workers as a result.
• Domestic Violence: Addressing unequal gender power relations and enduring norms and beliefs that uphold harmful traditional practices and gender-based violence (GBV) is essential to assuring rural women’s empowerment and alleviating poverty. In a multi-country study, women in rural areas report experiencing physical abuse more frequently than women in metropolitan areas. If they disclose abuse, they can also worry about their personal safety or the protection of their children. Due to factors including lack of transportation and distance from facilities, women may find it more challenging to obtain police, counseling, and legal services in rural areas than in urban ones.
• Inadequate Education: Despite the fact that there is a growing demand for education, there are fewer women in our country who are literate than men. Far fewer girls than boys apply for school, and thousands more girls drop out as a result. In the urban areas of the nation, girls and boys are likely on equal footing in terms of their educational attainment. However, the situation is very different in the country’s rural areas, where girls continue to have lower literacy rates than boys. Most women who work in the industry are not registered as “Construction Workers“, making them ineligible for any benefits provided by the Construction Workers’ Welfare Board. Men and women with higher education levels are given paid formal occupations, leaving women with only a secondary education to fill non-agricultural, domestic, and other positions.
• Lack of Pay Parity: Because of physical limitations that prevent them from lifting large objects, women in the field of manual labor are paid less per hour than males. Rural women are disproportionately employed in low-skilled, low-productivity, low-paying employment with lengthy hours, unsanitary workplaces, and no social safety. They are more likely to perform household duties as unpaid volunteers, which implies their labor goes mostly unnoticed or unappreciated. They are much less likely than men to engage in wage employment in the rural sector, where they are most active (both agricultural and non-agricultural). Rural women are more likely to work part-time, seasonally, and in labor-intensive jobs when they do work for pay. Women own less than 20% of all lands worldwide. The pay discrepancy between men and women can reach 40% in rural areas.
• Climate Change: Climate change poses a threat to increase the susceptibility of rural women to exploitation, isolation, and prejudice. Rural women rely heavily on the natural resources in the area for their livelihood. Women’s existing unequal access to productive assets is further impacted by climate change. Women from indigenous and ethnic groups suffer disproportionately.

The preamble of the Indian Constitution states that gender equality is a fundamental principle, and women’s equality is a fundamental right. The state is required by the constitution to promote the same as part of its core responsibility and to give clear direction through well-thought-out policies and guidelines. Even though we have been independent for more than 75 years, there is still a long way to go. The media is flooded with reports of crimes against women every day. The transformational economic, environmental, and social transformations necessary for sustainable development are mostly being driven by rural women. But among the other difficulties they encounter—many of which are made worse by the world food and economic crises and climate change are limited access to financing, health care, and education. Given the significant proportion of women working in agriculture around the world, empowering them is essential for the welfare of people, families, and rural communities as well as for overall economic production.

The Government of India has launched a number of program over the past few years that are specifically targeted toward rural women with the intention of ensuring their economic security and granting them the social respect they deserve. The Government has taken action to promote equality at all levels, empower rural women, and improve child education as gender disparity has long existed in Indian society.