Govt directs women employees should not stay beyond office hours

Delhi Government’s Women and Child Development department has directed its branches to ensure that women employees are not made to stay in the office beyond working hours, until absolutely necessary.

In an advisory issued earlier this week, the department also asked the branches to ensure that if women are made to work late, they should be dropped off at home safely.

The advisory said that “safety, dignity and well-being of women employees is of paramount importance”, and stressed it is the duty of the department to ensure a secure and enabling work environment at all times.

It said instances of women employees having to remain in office beyond normal working hours require clear safeguards, structured responsibility and strict oversight so that no woman is placed at risk while performing official duties.

“...It is hereby directed that no woman employee shall be required or expected to remain in office beyond normal working hours unless absolutely unavoidable. In all such exceptional circumstances, the concerned branch head/reporting officer shall be personally responsible for ensuring her safe return,” the advisory said.

The advisory directed that every branch head shall assess in advance whether work necessitating late sitting by a woman employee is essential and unavoidable.  “Ensure that women employees are not asked to stay back for routine or non-time-sensitive tasks that can reasonably be taken up on the next working day,” it said.

In case late sitting becomes unavoidable, the department should coordinate to make appropriate arrangements so that the woman employee is dropped safely at her residence or at another safe and convenient point.

“Remain fully accountable for ensuring that such arrangements are actually made and executed in a timely manner,” it said.

The advisory also reminded all officers, branch heads, “to maintain a humane, gender-sensitive and responsible managerial approach, keeping foremost the safety and dignity of women employees”.

“This advisory is expected to be complied with in letter and spirit, ensuring that the safety of women employees remains a non-negotiable for all,” it read.