Railways To Consider Job Category Shift For Women Employees

In a welcoming move for women, the Ministry of Railways has planned to consider applications seeking a change in job category for women employees working as track maintainers and assistant locomotive pilots.

This move could be a huge relief for hundreds of women employees who face difficulties in their nature of work as track maintainers or assistant Loco pilots, following representation made by trade unions to the railway management over the years.

Railways To Consider Job Shift For Women Employees

The railway board, in a communication to the general managers of all Zonal Railways, called for the number of female track maintainers and assistant loco pilots in their respective zones who requested a change in job category.

Acting on a request made by the National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR), which requested to provide women track maintainers and assistant Loco Pilots with a one-time option to change their job category, the Railways Board began the process of collecting employee information, including those in other categories who had sought to change from their assigned categories.

The Indian Railways is notably one of the largest employers of the Government of India, having more than 12 lakh employees in various categories such as mechanical, electrical, commercial, safety, engineering, etc. About 99,000 women are currently employed in the Indian railways, out of which a few thousand are working in the engineering, electrical, and mechanical departments.

Many women working as assistant Loco pilots complained of poor facilities on duty, especially during pregnancy and on other days when they could not sit for long hours.

According to a statement by a senior Loco pilot, the locomotive cabin is very small with few facilities. When loco pilots are put on duty for about six hours on express trains and nine hours on freight trains, it becomes difficult even for them to answer nature’s call as express trains stop at stations for just a couple of minutes.

The president of the All Indian Railways Federation, N.Kanniah, said the union represented the problems experienced by women employees, especially the crew, track maintainers, and travelling ticket examiners, to the Railway Board, and the management agreed to consider the request of those seeking a shift in job category.

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