ISSN 2320-5407 International Journal of Advanced Research (2015), Volume 3, Issue 6, 1204-1210

Journal homepage: http://www.journalijar.com INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

OF ADVANCED RESEARCH

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Protective Clothing for Women Labour on Construction Sites, Delhi

Simran Kaur1, Dr. Suruchi Mittar2
1. M.Design, Student National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi
2.Associate Professor National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi

Manuscript Info Abstract

Manuscript History: According to NTPC Safety Rules building worker means “A person who is
employed by a contractor or his subcontractor to do any skilled, semi-skilled
Received: xxxxxxx
Final Accepted: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx or manual, supervisory, technical or clerical work for hire or reward, whether
Published Online: xxxxxxxxxxxx the terms of employment be expressed or implied, in connection with any
building or other construction work.” (Rules, 2012). Construction industry is
Key words: the backbone of the economy as they provide job opportunity to the creators
of modern India. The labour strength comprises of both skilled and unskilled
Protective clothing, Female labour, workforce. In the current scenario of everyday development of Indian
economy, these construction workers play an indispensable role. Female
Construction industry, Injury,
workers abroad are provided with proper protective clothing depending on
Health & Safety the kind of work being assigned to them, but unfortunately none was found
in Delhi during the study. The focus of the study is to understand the nature
of work on site and identify the key factors related to the problems faced by
*Corresponding Author female workers while on site in terms of clothing. The interaction with the
female labours and the field study has revealed the problems that women are
currently facing. The study further leads to systematically design and
Simran Kaur development of protective clothing for female workers which caters to the
functional aspect designed by keeping in mind the cultural essence also. The
knowledge gained via survey and the interview conducted on 46 female
workers on construction site, helped understanding their requirement and
offering them a functional solution in their clothing to ease their problems.

Copy Right, IJAR, 2015,. All rights reserved

INTRODUCTION

Cities in India are mushrooming with Commercial sky- scrapers and residential towers. Even today, construction is a
labour driven activity. Striving farmers and landless labourers get attracted towards the cities in search of work
during their crises period. Those not having any skills set offer their labour in the construction sites. They stay in
rough shelters devoid of basic amenities. Working schedule is physically tiring and of long hours. Sanitation,
electricity and even clean water are not part of their camp stay at such sites. Their children grow along with this
nomadic movement. (Creches, 2011) Construction Industry provides 7% of the total world employment. Today
Indian construction industry employs about 31 million people and creates assets worth over Rs.200, 000 million
(India Infra Guru, 2008; GOI, 2008a) annually.

In India, construction industry is the second largest employer, after agriculture. It constitutes of largely unorganized
workforce (89%), of whom majority (3/4th) is unskilled. In terms of national investment, almost 40 to 50 per cent of

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the National Plan outlay is on construction. The industry contributes to 20 per cent of the GDP. (Creches, 2011)
Wherein, booming construction industry provides the immigrants with a sharp contrast. It ends up pulling a large
number of workers into the cities.

Women contributes to half of the workers in India as skilled jobs/ unskilled – jobs in other industries but in
construction industry, they are employed as unskilled labourers. Women irrespective of the years they have worked
are not upgraded as skilled labours. They perform various unskilled jobs in the industry like cleaning building sites,
carrying bricks, gravel, mortar and water up to the skilled carpenters and masons.

SCENARIO OF WOMEN LABOUR ON CONSTRUCTION SITES

In India, construction industry is the second largest employer, after agriculture. It constitutes of largely unorganized
workforce (89%), of whom majority (3/4th) is unskilled. In terms of national investment, almost 40 to 50 per cent of
the National Plan outlay is on construction. The industry contributes to 20 per cent of the GDP. (Creches, 2011)
Wherein, booming construction industry provides the immigrants with a sharp contrast. It ends up pulling a large
number of workers into the cities.
Women contributes to half of the workers in India as skilled jobs/ unskilled – jobs in other industries but in
construction industry, they are employed as unskilled labourers. Women irrespective of the years they have worked
are not upgraded as skilled labours. They perform various unskilled jobs in the industry like cleaning building sites,
carrying bricks, gravel, mortar and water up to the skilled carpenters and masons.

The current scenario of women labour on Delhi construction sites is a sad tale. They constitute one of the most
vulnerable segment out of the unorganized segment in the country. The women are working on sites along with their
husbands and other male family members. Family responsibilities and field responsibilities are loaded on their
minds whereas heavy loads of materials otherwise. There is a huge risk of limb and life while on the site. Moreover
they do not get any proper medical facilities and there is no sign of permitted grievance mechanism for them. All the
available mechanisms that exist are so complicated that they are beyond the reach of ordinary worker to approach.
(Sangathan, 2010) The women labour currently get lower wages as compared to men labour and have not been
provided by special facilities so as to cater their clothing needs in particular. These women belong to migrant lot
who have shifted from rural slums to the urban slums in order to earn their bread. They are not allowed to wear
sarees on the construction sites neither are they provided with any alternative. The women end up wearing layers of
clothing so as to meet their cultural social needs along with the field needs. The result is such that they wear 4-5
layers of clothing on their body which leads discomfort, lack of total work output and disinterest.

(Sangathan, 2010) , went on to study 65 construction sites comprised of both big and small sized sites in Delhi to
assess the ground level situation and observe how many rules of the Construction Workers Act are being
implemented. The results were extreme that none of the sites that were studied practiced these rules. No visible
Welfare or Occupational Safety Committee were spotted during the study. None of the workers were aware of the
laws that comprised of a safety committee.

PROBLEMS FACED BY WOMEN ON CONSTRUCTION SITES

Women are mostly the unskilled lot of construction site and face a lot of serious work related problems, viz., gender
and sexual harassment, wage discrimination, unhealthy job satisfaction. Despite these female labour still gets
attracted to construction jobs. They are supposed to perform only certain types of work and assist male work force.
India is among fastest growing economies. Construction labourers are one of the utmost vulnerable segments of the
unorganized sector as there are very less job opportunities for the unskilled. (Anu Rai 1, 2012). Triple Burden on the
Woman Worker: The female lot of workers have triple burden of working on the site and at home and also the
responsibility of raising children. Some basic issues are discussed as follows. (Advani, 2005)
Restricted Access to Basic Necessities such as sanitary and drinking water facilities
Discrimination in wage- Women being unskilled labour are paid low compared to men labour.
Women construction labourers consider their jobs as a hazardous occupation, as the activity process includes serious
health and safety related problems hampering women labourers adversely.
Women Sexual harassment at work place is at alarming stage. The insecure nature of employment, particularly for
women, is a vicious trap for women.
Accidents at Workplace: Construction site are marked as one of the most hazardous occupation with critical risks
involved, related to physical injuries and accidents. Few of them are Struck by falling/flying objects, Skin problems

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due to chemicals and sharp objects, Eyes endangered by sharp materials & objects, Respiration problems due to
chemicals, polluted air and weather change, Physical damage caused by falls & slips, Scaffolding collapse or its
failure

FACTORS AFFECTING WOMEN PARTICIPATION IN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The Paper states the women in construction are considered as inappropriate gender for the construction sites to be in
and around for the construction occupation. The women on the construction sites are required to maintain a balance
between their work life and managing their family. The paper has discussed about the various reasons for why
women labour escapes from the construction industry. Benette et al, in a study figured common reasons as
construction sites considered to be inappropriate for women, social acceptance level of women as labour to be very
low, working conditions such as extreme weather, long working hours and risk to hazards. Sexual harassment and
physical incapability are also pinned on to this list.

The strength of actively working women in such countries if found on construction sites as labour. A study reveals
97% of women on construction sites in India contribute to the informal segment. Thus increasing the proportion of
women in the informal sector. Similarly the women labour in African countries are either self-employed or unpaid
labours in the family business. Furthermore the study indicate that construction industry’s male dominated, skilled
jobs and craft based culture contributes to the barriers for women labour recruitment, their carrier upliftment and
keen participation.

Few of the issues faced by women are:

The traditional assumptions- women not being physically strong to take up the task. In a study women have agreed
that scope developing psychologically so as to maintain their place in the industry and cope up with the
environment. Construction sites are prone to MSD Musculoskeletal disorder as compared to men. Women are
almost twice under danger to suffer MSD. They tend to complain pain and injury than men, and as a result leave job.
Overlooking the self-capability limit also results into MSD and other physical issues. Control over work, support
from peer and professionalism tends to be hampered by personal gender offences. The female workers have also
complained about the ill-fitted PPE and PPC which instead of easing the job increases the chance of accidents. A
study conducted by OSHA 1999, figured that most of the PPE & PPC availed women on sited are not as per the
women’s physique. They tend to percolate the men’s PPC & PPE to women which turn causes damage.
The culture of long working hours is a matter of great concern to the health of women on sites who are already
multitasking between managing families and the work place. The fear amongst male workers regarding women
taking their position by performing well also hinders their chances of growth and promotion in the industry. Also,
omen are seen as threats to the existing upper level men workers. Providing proper training and opportunities in a
healthy working environment can contribute to strengthen the women labour contribution on the construction sites.

HAZARDS FOCUSED

The Hazards focused under this study will be a combination of Physical and Chemical Hazards for example,
substance such as benzene is both toxic and flammable.
Typical Physical Resistance concerns include abrasion resistance, cut resistance, puncture resistance, tear strength,
tensile strength, flammability, and resistance to the effects of heat and cold. Accidents due to non-visibility.
Chemical Hazards caused by dusty materials and substances that contain harmful chemicals. Such as Silica from
cement, plaster. Man-made materials such as rock wool, exposure to lead and other metals in welding operations,
pesticides etc.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The target of the study is to assess the problems faced by women on construction site and understand their working
patterns. These insights would contribute to acquire the knowledge of key requirements of women labour on the
construction site in terms of clothing. The area focused in the study is Delhi Construction Sites.

OBJECTIVES
To design a range of Protective clothing against Physical Hazards faced by women in construction sites.

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SUB OBJECTIVES
To understand the problems and needs of Indian Women in construction site.
To evaluate potential hazards faced when completing the assigned work.
Understanding the user behavior and develop prototype.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Descriptive method was used by the researcher for the study. The researcher was directed towards the understanding
of clothing needs of women on construction sites. Questionnaires and expert Interviews were used as survey tools.

SAMPLING

In this research 46 women labor randomly chosen. The sample covered all age segments so as to understand needs at
various ages of a women labor.

DATA COLLECTION TOOLS

The researcher collected the data with the employment of self-prepared questionnaires. The questionnaire was
translated from English to Hindi/ Bengali by the researcher while conducting in person data collection as all the
women Labour belonged to same communities.

ANALYSIS

NATURE OF WORK
No. Of Respondents (46) Percentage
Skilled 43 93%
Unskilled 3 7%
93% of the sample is unskilled labour. They have all the work related to loading and unloading of materials.

DESCRIPITON OF WORK AND TIME

8-10 hours 9-11 hours 12-15 hours
Concreting Work (7-8 Kg) 3 4 3
Mansory Work - Carrying bricks (10-12 bricks) 6 3 2
Earth Work- Shifting Mud (13-15 Kgs) 2 3 1
Crowbar- to dig (15 times in a minute) 4 2 0
Curing- Carrying water ( 8 Ltrs ) 5 2 1
Breaking Jalis- using hammer (48 times a minute) 2 2 1

There majority of work mentioned above is headed under the category of unskilled work.
Concreting: It was studied that 50 bundles each weighing 7-8 kg, was moved by female labour in every 15 minutes.
Mansory work: Each female carried 10-13 bricks (each weighing nearly 2.5 kg) on their loader and moved along the
scaffolding. While they carried same weight 5o times during the entire day.
Earth work: each women carried approximately 13-15 kg of mud on their head to walk down 40 feet to deposit the
mud and return. Same task was done for 170 times a day.
Crowbar to dig: During the course of digging into the earth a female worker would hit 15 times in a minute.
Curing: women carried water pots each containing 8 ltrs of water to pour over the constructed structures, repeated
the same 15 times per hour.
Breaking jalis: In breaking Jalis, Female labour used hammer to hit on metal for 50 times in a minute and went
doing the same for a nine hours of shift with an hour break in between.
CLOTHING PATTERN OF WOMEN ON CONSTRUCTION SITE
No. Of Respondents (46) Percentage
Saree 31 67.39
Suit 6 13.04

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Both 9 19.56

67.39% wore saree on their work sites, addressing social and cultural reason for the same. Women comprising of
13.04% wore only suits as it provided a great level of comfort on the site. 19.56% of women claimed that they wear
both suit and saree on the work sites.

UNDERSTANDING AND USAGE OF PERSONAL PROTECTIVE CLOTHING TO THE WOMEN ON

SITES

Understood Hard Hats Gloves Shoes

Importance
Strongly Agree 10 5 4 6
Agree 25 13 6 9
Disagree 7 3 2 4
Strongly Disagree 4 0 1 3

54.34% of female workers strongly agreed to the importance of protective clothing to them while on the work sites.
These were found to be wearing hard hats, gloves and shoes with On contrary there were women with 39.13%
Hard Hats, 21.73% Gloves and 32.60% Shoes.

UNDERSTANDING CAUSES FOR ABSENCE OF PERSONAL PROTECTIVE WOMEN CLOTHING

Causes No. Of Respondents (46) Percentage
Unavailable when needed 23 50%
Poor Fitting 30 65.21%
PPC in poor condition 21 45.65%
Uncomfortable 33 71.73%
No special clothing for women on 38 82.60%
Indian work sites

50% do not receive the protective clothing when they needed resulted into various injuries. 65.21% of women
mentioned that the available clothing was ill-fiitted which makes it more difficult. 71.73% of women felt
uncomfortable by wearing the clothing that is available to them so they pick up shirts of large size so as to cover the
loose “Palla” falling out from saree. No clothing available for women on Indian construction sites.

FINDINGS: PREFERENCES IN THE CLOTHING FEATURES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF

PROTECTIVE CLOTHING FOR WOMEN ON CONSTRUCTION SITES, NEW DELHI
82.60% of female workers wanted semi fit kurta for the comfortable body movement.
They preferred full sleeves in the majority of 86.95%.
60.86% of women preferred medium neck width along.
84.78% of women preferred knee length kurta along with the medium width flare
73.91% preferred Kurta with opening.
84.78% preferred buttons of women as it helps while changing the clothes.
65.21% of women preferred to have pockets on the waist side so as to have a little keeper in their clothing.
89.13% preferred loose fitted salwar over semi fit salwar.
78.26% of female workers wanted length of salwar to drop near the ankle
69.56% of women preferred elasticated waist band
23.91% of women who preferred cord as they are in habit of wearing.

PREFERENCES COLOR & MATERIAL

60.86% of women labour medium colored kurta for their construction site wear. Too dark was not preferred.

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100% cotton was on top preference of 91.30% stated it as one of the most favorable material for their worksite. It
does not create any irritation on the skin. 93.47% of respondents preferred dark colored bottom against zero
selection for light colored bottoms. On contrary to kurta, along with dark color they also preferred the bottom to be
medium in weight in terms of make. 65.21% of women chose medium weighted material. 61% of the total sample
preferred orange as their preference. Orange is otherwise also provided to them to wear on the construction sites as a
reflective Jacket. With 33% of majority women on site supported for light blue color.
6% Dark blue was preferred by women for bottom wear specifically.

AGE OF THE RESPONDENTS

Age Group Number Of respondents Percentage
18-25 Years 7 15%
26-35 Years 28 61%
36-45 Years 6 13%
Above 45 Years 5 11%

Average age of the women on the construction sites is 32.2 years. Around this age women are all married and they
have raised their children. They are also working on the construction sites to help their family.

DESIGN SOLUTION

Analysis of the questionnaire and interview with the women on the construction sites provided with the information
to be used for the development of the prototype. There are many features that can be added to the Protective clothing
for the women on the construction sites. Following are the clothing features:

Minimal number of layers in the garment

Medium flared garments enough for walking
Bifurcated bottom to make the body movement swift
Loose enough making room for air and fit enough for avoiding any accidents
Opening in the upper garment
Loops on the shoulder for holding jacket and “Dupatta”
Full sleeve garments with adjustable lengths
Reflective Trims on the upper garment
Lighter shade for upper garment
Darker shade for lower garment
Cotton fabric is preferred
Fully elasticated bottom
Bottom fabric to be more durable

PROPOSED SOLUTION

The whole concept of designing protective clothing for women revolves around providing a comfort edge to the female
workers on the construction sites. The main focus is to address the basic needs of women regarding their clothing on sites
and provide them with a solution which would help them make their work easier and improve the level of comfort. The
clothing has been designed keeping all the age categories in alignment. It has simple yet effective features to fit the work
nature of the women workers on the construction site and also be feasible for the mass execution. It is designed to be
comfortable and reduce level of skin related problems faced by women.

CONCLUSION

Women on Indian construction sites are at present indispensable part of the Industry. There is a huge scope of
improvement in the upliftment of their working conditions. Such step would motivate them to deliver the desired

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work outcomes and also retain their interest in work along with that maintain their health and safety too. In the
booming country like India there is a huge demand and scope for women labor in the construction Industry.

REFERENCES

1. Advani, P., 2005. National Commission for Women, India. [Online]

Available at: http://ncw.nic.in/pdfreports/women%20workers%20in%20construction%20industry.pdf
[Accessed January 2015].

2. Anu Rai 1, P. A. S. 2., 2012. Workplace Culture & Status of Women Construction Labourers: A case
study in Kolkata, West Bengal. Indian Journal of Spatial Science, p. 11.

3. Creches, M., 2011. CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IN INDIA. p. 5.

4. Radhlinah Aulin, M. J., n.d. Issues confronting women participation in the construction industry,
Sweden: s.n.

5. Rules, N. S., 2012. NTPC Safety Rules. s.l.:CORPORATE SAFETY DEPARTMENT, NTPC Ltd..

6. Sangathan, N. M. S., 2010. The Condition of Construction Workers in the National Capital Region of
Delhi, Delhi: Nirman Mazdoor Shakti Sangathan.

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