As a working professional in India, there are a lot of legal frameworks to ensure that one does not feel any disadvantage in their workplace (or in general) because of their gender, caste, religion, class, age, sexual orientation, or degree of able-bodiedness. This is all done to cater to the broad idea of everyone being equal, and therefore, people should not be worried about whether the workforce they will be joining is safe, diverse, and/or comfortable. It is important to ensure that everyone gets an equal opportunity to build a just and equal society.
Equal Opportunity is a phrase that is broadly used to represent and promote the idea that everyone (within any organisation) should have an equal chance at opportunities and that no one should be treated unfairly. To put this into practice, different countries have different laws to embody the same basic idea. Promotion and practice of equal opportunities not only helps make workplaces free of discrimination but also helps in building a society that values fairness, impartiality, and equal access to facilities.
In general, equal opportunity laws state that a prospective employee cannot be deprived or discriminated against because of their:
Based on these, organisations are supposed to make their own set of policies through their set of values and key guiding principles and make these available to authorities and present and would-be employees.
Equality has been enshrined in the Indian constitution as it is important for a country as diverse as India to treat its citizens equally to be able to develop and run smoothly. Some of the several provisions are:
Article 15
Article 15 of the Indian Constitution prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth.
Article 16
Article 16 of the Indian Constitution mandates equality of opportunity in matters of public employment. Clauses 1 and 2 have a general instruction that there shall be equal opportunity for all the citizens of India in government jobs. Clauses 3, 4, 4A, and 4B grant parliament the power to make laws to prescribe requirements “for a class or classes of employment or appointment to an office under the Central Government or any local authority.” Clause 4 acts as a guidelines for provisions for reservation of appointments favouring backward classes. The Constitution 103rd Amendment Act, 2019 has inserted a sixth clause to provide ten per cent reservation of posts for economically weaker sections of the population in addition to the existing reservation in each category.
Article 17
Article 17 of the Indian Constitution abolishes Untouchability and makes it clear that any enforcement of such discrimination will be punishable by law.
Protection of Civil Rights Act prescribes punishment for the preaching and practice of Untouchability. The punishment consists of imprisonment for a term of not less than one month and not more than six month, and a fine of at least hundred rupees and not more than five hundred rupees. For committing an act of offence against anyone to exact revenge for this penalty, the resulting punishment will be imprisonment for at least two years with fine.
The Act provides that if any non-SC and non-ST person wrongs a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe in any of the ways listed in the law, then they will be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but may extend to five years and with fine.
This legislative act protects women from sexual harassment at their workplace. It is legally acquired for workplaces to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) at each office with 10 or more employees. If an employer fails to constitute such a committee or does not comply with the requirements prescribed, then they may be imposed with a monetary penalty of upto INR 50,000.
Section 354 and 509 of IPC
According to Section 354 of IPC, anyone assaulting or using criminal force against a woman intending to ‘outrage her modesty’ will be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend two years, or fine, or with both; while Section 509 states that if someone says anything, makes any sound or gesture, exhibits any object, or intrudes upon the privacy of a woman, then they shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, with a fine.
This act safeguards the rights of disabled people and provides for deterrence and reformation for education, employment, rehabilitation, special insurance schemes, and establishment of research and vocational training institutes to enhance all-round developments of disabled people while also addressing their grievances.
Equal Employment Opportunity is not only advantageous for working individuals but also for the organisations they work in. An individual will get appropriate regard for their different lifestyles, values, and personal choices, which in return will help boost their productivity, performance, and work satisfaction. This will broaden their employment opportunities and help them work without a fear of discrimination. On the other hand, these laws help an organisation in creating a more diverse workforce and thus improve their reputation while also giving them a vast pool of talent to tap into which results in an elevated employee engagement and a boost in revenue.
If you are a young, able-bodied, male and you do not belong to a minority or a marginalised group then you might think that these laws have nothing for you. But in truth, these laws also safeguard your interest and help you in being comfortable in who you are. These principles apply to:
These laws, therefore, help everyone, in getting the most out of their jobs and workplaces and help everyone in earning their livelihoods with dignity.
Equal Opportunity in the Workplace helps create a safer environment to work and acts as a building block for an equal society. It helps protect discriminated and oppressed people while simultaneously assisting them in getting equal opportunities as others so that they can also go about their jobs without any difficulty. There are federal laws in place to make sure that discriminations don’t happen in workplaces, and if they do, then the perpetrators are punished accordingly.