These organisations are rolling out several new-age benefits to attract diverse talent and retain existing women employees, supporting them through the crucial years of their careers. These measures are finding a favourable response from women professionals.
Menstrual leave, creche/on-site daycare facilities, creche allowances, hybrid work models, mentorship and leadership development initiatives, returnship programmes, gender pay audits, referral reward policies when recommending female candidates are on offer to foster a more equitable and supportive workplace environment for women.
L&T introduced a raft of dedicated initiatives for women employees over the past year. These include a menstrual leave policy announced by chairman and managing director SN Subrahmanyan earlier this month.
The multinational conglomerate also has a support system for women transitioning back to work, including safeguarding their performance ratings and offering a hybrid work model for a post-leave transitional period. Creche facilities are available at many project sites and offices, with a creche allowance being offered in the absence of a facility in certain locations. If travelling for work, women employees can take their infant and a caretaker along at company cost. Wellness rooms for women have been introduced across major sites, manufacturing plants and offices.
“As a legacy organisation operating primarily in core engineering fields, our work demands a strong on-site presence. While hybrid work may not be feasible in our industry, we are fostering an inclusive culture and introducing progressive policies that address real employee needs,” said C Jayakumar, CHRO, L&T.These benefits are seeing a strong initial uptake, say companies.
Over 43% of women employees at L&T are utilising creche facilities while at RPG group company CEAT, 20% of women used the menstrual leave policy Shakti since its launch last September.
CEAT, among India’s leading tyre makers, also recently launched the Womentoring programme to nurture and develop high-potential women by pairing them with senior executives who mentor them to help improve the representation of women in leadership positions. CEAT also conducted a gender pay audit to ensure transparency.
“Diversity has become imperative for any business organisation which aims to successfully innovate, grow and thrive,” said Riya Dalvi, Chairperson – DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) at RPG Group.
For companies, these efforts are also extending to addressing the reasons why employees, especially women, leave their jobs at various stages of their careers.
In January, tech-to-tractor conglomerate Mahindra Group launched the SOAR: Seamless Opportunity for Amazing Returnships programme aimed at creating full-time, meaningful opportunities for women professionals on a career break who are now ready to resume their jobs.
Other initiatives offered include a five-year maternity support programme, covering pre-childbirth support and enhanced maternity benefits to post-childbirth benefits like care allowance, outstation travel support, sabbatical options, creche facility or reimbursement, and special medical sanctions.
“These policies actively support diversity, inclusivity, and gender equality, facilitating the growth and advancement of women professionals. Ultimately, through such initiatives, Mahindra aims to attract, retain, and nurture diverse talent,” said Ruzbeh Irani, president – group human resources, Mahindra Group.
Breaking new ground
In a big push towards gender equality, Tata Steel, through its Flames of Change’ initiative, recently recruited 23 women to form India’s first-ever crew of female firefighters in the steel industry.
“Our advocacy for inclusive work shifts has already seen success at our Tata Steel Kalinganagar Plant and coal and iron ore mines in Jharkhand, and we plan to extend this model to our other units in Jamshedpur soon,” said Jaya Singh Panda, chief diversity officer, Tata Steel.
“Manufacturing has long been perceived as a male-dominated sector, but we believe that inclusivity is key to driving innovation and long-term success,” said Panda. To foster leadership, Tata Steel offers development programmes for empowering women across levels.
At Honeywell India, Aspire, a leadership development programme for high-potential women is on offer among other benefits. These include the Reconnect Program to support employees on maternity leave, Re-Start Her Hiring for women professionals returning to the workforce after a career break, counselling support, and collaboration workshops.
“We understand that supporting women at critical points in their careers and personal lives is crucial for empowering our workforce and ensuring long-term employee satisfaction,” said Arppna Mehra, VP- HR, Honeywell India. Strengthening gender diversity, particularly in senior and niche roles, is also a key objective, she said.
“An inclusive workplace is not altruistic in its purpose; it is a business requirement. If an organisation wants to thrive in this age of ‘war for talent’, women cannot be ignored. We see this trend catching on with more and more traditional organisations,” said Ariz Rizvi, head of health risk management solutions, India at consulting firm Aon.