DIMAPUR — The Naga Students’ Union, Delhi (NSUD) with the Northeast Support Centre and Helpline, organised a legal awareness programme on ‘Sexual harassment at workplace and rights of employees’ on July 27 at Community Centre, PTS, Malviya Nagar, Delhi.
The event was organised in collaboration with the Special Police Unit for North East Region and Nyay Neeti Foundation, stated the NSUD in a press release.
Jepi Y Chisho, president of NSUD, highlighted the growing concerns of violations of labour rights faced by its members employed across Delhi-NCR. The objective of the event, he stated, was to create awareness of employees’ basic rights and to facilitate access to existing support systems for redressal of workplace-related grievances.
Speaking on the problems faced by Northeast people in metro cities across India, Dr. Alana Golmei, advocate and founder of Northeast Support Centre and Helpline (NESCH), shared about the prevalence of discrimination, rent-related issues, human trafficking and fake job agencies.
Dr. Golmei also gave a brief background of how the Special Police Unit for North East Region came into being and the ongoing efforts to improve safety and security of Northeast people in metro cities. She encouraged the participants to be more vigilant about their rights.
Advocate Eliza Rumthao, a Delhi-based lawyer who is also part of the NESCH, took a session on sexual harassment at workplace wherein she provided insights on the various acts and behaviour that constitute sexual harassment and impressed upon the participants to remain wary of such actions and behaviours.
She apprised the participants about the rights and protections for female employees in workplaces and the grievance redressal mechanism enumerated under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.
Advocate Fidel Sebastian, a labour lawyer who is also a co-founder of Nyay Neeti Foundation, spoke on the basic rights and entitlements of employees in any establishment and the legal remedies available to enforce such rights and entitlements. He further stressed on the need for collective efforts by employees so as to deter employers from adopting exploitative labour practices.
Advocate Samuel Khobung from North East Law Network, spoke on how to access and utilise legal aid services for persons who are unable to afford costs of private legal services.
The vote of thanks was delivered by NSUD general secretary KP Emelda Piphyane.
Also read: Northeast Support Centre and Helpline