DHARMAPURI: All Anitha wanted was to attend her sister’s wedding in Tirupattur. Excited, she requested three days’ leave. For anyone in the formal workforce, this would have been a simple matter. But Anitha worked in the unorganised sector, where the same game is played by different rules. Her request was denied as leave entitlement existed only on paper. In reality, the supervisor’s word was final. Feeling helpless, the 17-year-old attempted suicide.
“We immediately offered legal counselling. But both the girl and her family refused to pursue the matter,” recalls M Sankar (69), a native of Nilakottai in Dindigul. Faced with the demands of survival, the decision was easy to arrive at. “We respected their wishes. However, we ensured that Anitha received the PF benefits she was promised.”
For Sankar, the incident 25 years ago marked a turning point. “I realised how little the workers knew even about the threadbare protections that the law afforded them.”
Actively involved in grassroots efforts across villages in Dharmapuri to combat female infanticide and protect vulnerable women since the early 1980s, Sankar gradually evolved his work into a broader campaign for labour rights, workplace safety and women’s empowerment. In 2014, these efforts culminated in the founding of Thozhi Federation, a Dharmapuri-based NGO working to translate the letter of the law into real protections for workers.
Ever since, the NGO has been working to close the gap, one case at a time.
Sample this recent incident: Over a dozen young women employed at a textile company in Karur for work in shifts lacked identity cards. Adding to their woes, these women work at odd hours and sometimes leave work late at night.
One night, after a crime was reported in the locality, police suspicion fell on these women; with no identity card, they were unable to establish their innocence.
“We approached the district magistrate through the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA). When he learnt of the situation, he immediately ordered their release and issued a notice directing all private companies to provide identity cards to their employees,” Sankar recalls.
With a presence in 15 districts across Tamil Nadu, Thozhi has reached thousands of women workers. “In Dharmapuri, we focus on the rights of migrant workers; in Salem, we work to protect women employed in the anklet industry; and in Ambur and Tirupattur, we organise women working in shoe factories. We educate them about labour laws and help them claim their rightful dues, so they are not exploited,” says Sankar.
“When we began, workers had little or no awareness of minimum wages, ESI, PF or even their leave entitlements. Most worked on government holidays and put in 12- to 14-hour shifts every day,” says Thozhi state president Saraswathi Ramachandran. “Today, around 180 workers affiliated with us are receiving overtime pay. Most women value the opportunity to work, and are treated fairly. It is their lack of awareness about their rights that puts them at a disadvantage,” Saraswathi said.
One of the federation’s significant milestones came when some of its recommendations found a place in the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act). Thozhi championed the Pink Box Campaign, which advocated a discreet drop-box mechanism for women to submit complaints of workplace harassment and discrimination anonymously.
The campaign garnered the support of more than 2.5 lakh women. Building on this effort, the organisation is now focused on spreading awareness about the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.
The name ‘Thozhi’ means ‘female friend’ in Tamil. True to its name, the federation has become a pillar of support for women navigating workplace exploitation, discrimination and insecurity. For Sankar, the reward goes far beyond material gain. It lies in seeing every Anitha re-write her story, one in which she finds the courage to claim the dignity she deserves.
(Edited by Parveen Ali)