Working the Night Shift: Women in India’s Call Center Industry

• Main Author: Hechanova, Ma. Regina
• Format: text
• Published: Archīum Ateneo 2013
• Subjects: Industrial and Organizational Psychology; Psychology
• Online Access: https://archium.ateneo.edu/psychology-faculty-pubs/231; https://itidjournal.org/index.php/itid/article/view/1091
• Institution: Ateneo De Manila University

Working the Night Shift: Women in India’s Call Center Industry. Her book, informed by a feminist perspective, focuses specifically on issues of mobility and inequality. It also provides a fascinating picture of the experiences of women workers and the evolving images of “pink collar” work in a growing sector of India’s changing economy. From the perspective of ICTD, the author’s research highlights how information and communication technology has enabled the outsourcing of work to such developing countries as India. Currently the call center industry employs half a million workers and is the fastest-growing industry in India. Its economic benefits are apparent: Patel documents how the higher wages that workers earn in call centers enable them to help their families, as well as improve their own financial independence and quality of life.