Self Employed Women's Association
Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA), meaning "service" in several Indian languages, is a trade union based in Ahmedabad, India, that promotes the rights of low-income, independently employed female workers.
[8][9] India's history and patriarchal systems also contributes to this disparity because traditional gender roles exclude women from regular, secure forms of labour.
[11] SEWA is located in Ahmedabad, India, the city where Gandhi's ashram still exists and once served to facilitate much of the Mahatma's work.
Around the era of SEWA's establishment, Ahmedabad youths were enthusiastic to interact with the poor because of Gandhi's legacy in the city.
In 1972, SEWA materialized first as a collective of women that worked outside the textile mills and other formalized sources of income—individuals not targeted by TLA.
[10] Bhatt found that poor women in Ahmedabad were not just domestic workers, but conducted a variety of businesses at home—as hawkers, street vendors, construction labourers—and were not being represented in India's economy.
[13] In June 2024 A one-of-its-kind insurance policy has started making payouts to tens of thousands of women across India to help them cope with the impact of extreme heat.
SEWA goes beyond being a labour union and additionally acts as a meeting point for poor, Indian women who are regularly marginalized across rural landscapes and isolated to urban slums.
[14] SEWA's organizing model brings together women across castes and class who share experiences of labour exploitation.
A survey of SEWA members show that its women achieve the goals of full employment and self-reliance through interpersonal recognition that also has been shown to increase productivity within the organization.
[2] SEWA gives microcredit, or microfinance, to members through its bank, which is considered by many to increase micro and macro productivity by lending to individuals to pursue a business, finance a home, and various other ways to establish one's self.
[2] Women have become a central demographic within microfinance because they are understood to be the most socially vulnerable population within poverty-stricken communities and also tend to generate wealth for the whole family rather than as an individual.
A study by Jahiruddin (2011) of Bangladeshi microloan benefactors found that the poorest entrepreneurs (i.e. women) tend to be the most susceptible to business failure and increased debt because they have fewer resources as a safety net.
A 1999 study by Chen and Snodgrass found that SEWA members using the microloan program experienced an increase in income and could more easily find gainful employment.
Other economic tools used by SEWA include guidance in savings, insurance, housing, social security, pensions, fundamentals of personal finance, and counseling.
[23] In fact, women who work in the informal economy are often subject to police harassment because street vending is illegal, which provokes unnecessary force from law enforcement.
During the peak of Muslim-Hindu tension in the early 21st century, SEWA acted as a peacekeeper because of its nature as a bridge between the two religions, between castes, and between classes.
[1] SEWA Academy is a branch that conducts credible research on a range of subjects from childcare, to health reform, to professional experiences, and many other issues of importance to the organization.
WIEGO is within the Hauser Center for Non-Profit Organizations, a department of Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
[7][23] More than the Indian economy, self-employed women have a role in social hemispheres with few outlets to participate—SEWA works to bridge that gap by acting as a platform for civic engagement in local communities.
[30] SEWA has had more difficulty pushing for higher wages in rural areas, due to the excess supply of labour in those regions, which weakens the bargaining position of women.
Mahila Housing SEWA Trust's Karmika School helps women in the construction trades in India to gain those skills.
[32] The child care centers established by SEWA have acted during natural disasters such as floods and droughts to provide necessary food as well as other emergency supplies and assistance.
[32] In studies in the Kheda and Surendranagar districts before 2006, poor women with access to child care earned 50 percent more.
[36] The Surendranagar child care cooperative, which is run locally, inspired the creation of the "Women and Children's Development Mandal".
SEWA assisted in passing India's Act on the Unorganized Sector, which establishes some welfare and social security for non-traditional employees.
[37] According to personal interviews in July 1998, women who have worked with SEWA in their communities feel more confident and gain more respect from the men.
