Women In Indian Logistics Industry

The Indian logistics sector is prodigious and very diverse. The logistics industry holds a monumental value in the Indian economy,

As per economic survey 2017-18, the Indian logistics sector provides a livelihood to 22 million plus people. However, this industry is not accessible for women to this day and age.

Traditionally, Logistics has been associated with physical work and therefore it's contemplated as an ALL-MALE sector.

Women are historically dodged off with a conception that blue collar work does not belong to them due to which there is an immense difference in the ratio of men working in the logistics sector to the ratio of women.

Barriers faced by women in the logistics sector

The logistics sector is predominantly acquired by the male population of the country. Companies in this sector prefer to recruit male applicants due to the entrenched desire of masculinity for the blue collar work. Women are less than one-third of the population working as manual labor for logistics and none could be found at the top, consequently, companies are reluctant to seriously consider women candidates for the job.

On the other end of the spectrum, women find it difficult to work in the logistics sector due to safety issues and incompatibility of work and family life. Also, they lack the skills required for the work because of the unavailability of training and awareness.

Even Cargo - Bucking The Trend

In the male-gendered industry of logistics, Even Cargo is challenging the Gender norms and breaking the stereotypes by empowering women through training them for employment opportunities in this sector.

Even Cargo founded in 2016, is India's first only women E-commerce logistics company. The company started with the grassroots level, following the bottoms up approach with a motive of delivering equality. It promotes the logistics industry to the female population by encouraging and supporting their career development.

Even Cargo Is Breaking The Barriers and Building Blocks For Success -

This last mile delivery firm trains women in picking the packages from the warehouses to the point of consumption on a Two-Wheeler across the capital, Delhi.

Women are given training in riding two-wheelers by Honda and are made aware of the traffic rules and signs under their surveillance.

They are also taught conformity for interacting with the customers to make their experience memorable. The training sessions also offer women knowledge related to the usage of smartphones and google maps.

The best part is that the job requirement is to only know basic English, which makes it easier for women to get the job and become financially independent. Women are also helped in developing relevant skills through logistics-specific training.

For eradicating the safety barriers completely Even Cargo has identified safe routes and has blacklisted unsafe areas for the delivery girls and has also considered work hours which are safe and manageable for them without causing incompatibility of work and family life.

Even cargo has till now trained many women who are able to earn somewhere between 8000-15000 per month, resulting in a 100% increase in their household annual income making them financially strong and ensuring financial inclusion.

By hitting the bottom of the pyramid it's made sure there is an effect in other levels too, E-commerce companies are made sure that they have made Women's role pivotal at administrative and management level, Leading to growth in overall employment of women in the sector.

Industry’s and government initiatives

Gender equality is linked to the country's overall economic performance, and logistics players have started to take steps to bury gender issues at the workplace. Since 2017 there has been a 4% increase in women’s participation in work labor, the logistics sector is initiating women employment as it brings the richness of the knowledge and experience to the workforce and brings together varied perspectives which can lead to the success of the enterprise.

Government is committed to make logistics industry bigger and to increase jobs in the sector from 22 million to 40 million by 2020, this step would build space for women in the sector and would open the gates for gender equality.

As E-commerce companies have rapidly expanded the scale of logistics companies, the need for more labor is created which eventually gives women a platform to build their career and make themselves financially independent and strong.

Well, we can say that the logistics industry is going through a phase of transformation through eradicating genderization with the help of government and companies like Even Cargo. Vanishment of gender discrimination conveys the possibility of professional development of women in this sector.