Sumiya Din*, Nisar Ahmad Wani, Dr Saima Farhad
The informal sector has always been thriving and growing at a great pace. It provides a variety of ventures to unskilled, unemployed population to earn for their sustenance. Large number of unemployed people has found refuge in this sector throughout the world, particularly in developing countries. Generally, the people involved in this sector lack economic security and legal protection. Thus, there is a greater susceptibility of workers who work outside the reach of labour legislation or trade union organisation due to the absence of social protection laws. Women, being the dominant workers in the informal sector, are predominantly at a greater risk.
The street vendors in general and women vendors in particular, because of the nature of their work, are subjected to a number of vulnerabilities which affect their health. Besides pollution, they are also exposed to drastic climatic conditions. With the exception of certain vegetable vendors from Soura market, who apparently only work for 3–4 hours each day, these women workers put in roughly 10-12 hours a day. They stand all day, irrespective of the climatic conditions, putting their merchandise on the road/side walk or tarpaulin sheets and sell their goods. In addition to the hazards their being on the streets exposes them to, the hot summers and icy winters have a particular impact on their health. The women vendors also suffer because of the lack of basic amenities and sanitation at work place. Thus, this study is an attempt to explore the Reproductive Health and Occupational Vulnerability of women street vendors.
KeywordsWomen vendors; Health; Safety; Vulnerability; Occupational hazards; Reproductive health
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