This report is a sub-national comparison of legal barriers to women’s right to choose work in India. Using an analytical framework, the report measures the extent to which Indian states discriminate against women. 23 states are assessed on the preponderance of 4 types of restrictions on female job-seekers: (1) working at night; (2) working in jobs deemed hazardous; (3) working in jobs deemed arduous; and (4) working in jobs deemed morally inappropriate.

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We all know women who log night shifts at the Cyber-hub, Gurgaon or IT hub, Bangalore or a bank office. But, it’s not as simple as clearing multiple rounds of interviews, and working hard every day at your job. No! In 13 Indian states, women can only be employed for night-shifts if their employers comply with a set of conditions mandated under their Shops and Establishments Acts.

Leela had been a binding assistant at the Kerala Books and Publications Society, a state- owned textbook publishing house, for 19 years when she was overlooked for the post of a supervisor. In terms of seniority, she claimed she was eligible for a promotion. However, her employer argued that as a woman, she could not work beyond 7 pm, which she would need to in a supervisory role, under the Factories Act, 1948.

Non-discrimination in the law is a necessary first step to help female job-seekers enter the market without any roadblocks. But employers also need to see the paucity of women as a problem and be willing to implement solutions.

For The Print, authors Sarvnipun Kaur and Abhishek Singh write on the ways in which states in India regulate and restrict women’s employment using findings from our State of Discrimination Index.

An exclusive report in Livemint on the findings of Trayas’ State of Discrimination Report which presents a comparison of 23 Indian states on the extent of sex-based legal discrimination using 48 Acta, 169 Rules and 20 Notifications/Orders. - How a maze of laws across states come between women and work - Using 48 Acts, 169 rules, and 20 notifications/orders, Trayas, a regulatory research and policy advisory company, built an index comparing 23 states on the economic freedom of women

State governments have approximately 5 months to frame pro worker, pro business rules. The authors share their thoughts on what can be expected from the labour codes.