Abstract
World over women’s participation in the workforce has further reduced as a consequence of the ongoing pandemic. In India, the women’s Labour Force Participation is as low as 20.5%, with a majority of women being employed in unorganised sectors (UNDP, 2020). In the context of higher education, according to the AISHE Report 2019, there are 63.35% male teachers as compared to 36.65% female ones. While in temporary appointments there are 98 female teachers per 100 male teachers, the number dwindles to 37 female teachers per 100 male teachers at the level of professors. A similar trend in gender distribution can be seen in non-teaching positions. Given these realities, the chapter focuses on the impact of the pandemic on women in academia. It shares the results of a study conducted among 100 women working in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in both, academic and non-academic (administrative) capacity. The findings of the study indicate a highly gendered experience and the differential impact of the pandemic on women, influenced mainly by institutional policies and family environment. This indicates the need for reform, driven by policy measures that correctively correspond with gendered realities of women’s work at both State and institutional levels.
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Notes
- 1.
The President and Chief Executive of Institute of Women’s Policy Research, C Nicole Mason, coined the term “shecession”.
- 2.
Also identified as “care work” that includes mentoring, meeting with students, reading and commenting on drafts, and writing recommendation letters, inclusive of “teaching”, “chairing”, and “advising”. From “The Burden of Invisible Work in Academia: Social Inequalities and Time Use in Five. University Departments” by Social Sciences Feminist Network Research Interest Group. Department of Sociology, Humboldt State University.
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Nair, N. (2022). Navigating the Labyrinths During the Pandemic: Women’s Experiences in Higher Education. In: Raj Kumar, C., Mukherjee, M., Belousova, T., Nair, N. (eds) Global Higher Education During and Beyond COVID-19. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-9049-5_10
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