The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued an advisory to airlines and airports to adopt measures to promote gender equality and recommended a slew of measures, including return-to-work policies for women on a career break, training programmes for cabin crew to help them diversify their skills, and leadership and mentorship programmes for women.
The safety regulator said its advisory aims to increase the representation of women in various positions in the aviation sector to 25% by 2025, which is also the call given by the International Air Transport Association under its 25by2025 global best practices.
The DGCA circular details various steps aviation entities can adopt, including identifying diversity objectives to guide hiring procedures as well as ensuring equal representation at the time of recruitment.
Organisations have also been urged to implement government laws on the provision of maternity leave and creche facilities, and develop measures to hire women back after a break in service due to parenting needs. The regulator has also asked them to develop a zero tolerance policy towards sexual harassment, and train and educate employees to dispel biases and stereotypes against women.
The DGCA wants airlines to extend training programmes that encourage cabin crew to learn about technical and operational areas so that they may move horizontally across other departments in the organisation.
It has also asked the organisation to promote gender equality through leadership and mentorship programmes, and develop a pool of women leaders, which will further “foster a culture of inclusivity and substantive representation of women in higher decision making roles”.
Published - June 19, 2024 10:11 pm IST
