International Women’s Day, also called International Working Women’s Day, is celebrated every year on the 8th of March. The focus of the celebrations is on the general celebration of women. Respect, acknowledgement, appreciation and love towards them for their economic, political and social achievements are the main aspects of the day.
On the occasion of International Women’s Day this year, the President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, inaugurated the first Conference of Women Legislators, the theme of which was ‘The Role of Women Legislators in Nation Building’. The conference was held on March 5, 2016, in New Delhi. Speaking on the occasion, he said that the Indian Constitution provides equal rights to men and women and also enshrines that there should be no discrimination between the two genders with respect to employment or appointment to any office under the State.
This year the United Nations’ theme for the International Women’s Day was “Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality”. An independent campaign was also started which organized events around the #PledgeForParity hashtag.
We at S. S. Rana & Co. also celebrated this day with much enthusiasm. Interestingly, 9 out of a total 13 Head of Departments (HODs) in the firm and more than 50% of the entire staff are women. To celebrate this day, an event was organized in the firm where the women of the organization were celebrated and appreciated, followed by a small presentation, and a cake-cutting ceremony. Women consultants, employees as well as interns were also given pepper sprays for their safety.
The firm is committed to providing equal opportunity and promote gender equality and therefore encourage female IP practitioners and paralegals to foray into the mainstream law and legal services. Some of our women friendly initiatives and policies at S.S. Rana & Co. to help women employees manage their careers and family responsibilities more successfully are as follows:
- No. of Women Employees: We take pride in stating that at present, more than 75% of the lawyers at S.S. Rana & Co. are women. Women also make up more than 50 % of the total employees.
- Flexible work schedules: Depending on the requirement of the employee, the facility of flexible work timings has been extended to several women employees for reasons including health issues, family commitments, after maternity leave for child care, etc.
- Awareness and Training Programmes: S.S. Rana & Co. periodically conducts workshops/trainings for the awareness of employees. Instances include a workshop on “Financial planning, tax saving and financial security” by Financial Counselor of repute and a Workshop on “Female Healthcare” by a Doctor from the reputed Sita Ram Bharti hospital.
- Maternity Leave: The facility of maternity leave is extended to the employees as a matter of right in our organization. Maternity Leave is given for a minimum 3 months and more for proper care of child and mother.
- Corporate Moms: We acknowledge and appreciate working mothers and have awarded them with the title of “Corporate Moms” on the occasion of the Firm’s 25th anniversary on September 1, 2014.
- Prevention of Harassment and Anti-Discrimination Policy: The firm also has an Anti-Sexual Harassment Committee in place, headed directly by Mrs. Bindra Rana, Founding Partner. Regular meetings are held by the committee wherein policies are discussed and implemented for providing a safe working environment to our women employees. All the issues are taken up by the committee very tactfully and effectively, maintaining confidentiality at all levels.