Tribal Women, Gender Norms and Precarity: A Case Study of Santal from West Bengal, India

Tribal women in India are primary workers who work along with their male family members (red-collar workers) and receive equal remuneration regardless of gender. They are offered the same benefits – such as holidays, work environment, or workplace treatment – as their male counterparts. However, they have no decision-making freedom or agency within professions, which they share with their male counterparts. Tribal women farmers do not enjoy the freedom to decide the number of cultivation cycles that would be followed. Even women who join self-help groups to earn their livelihood – and thus empowerment – are compelled to spend their earnings towards family expenses and fiscal support towards their kin. Their husbands are not obligated to demonstrate a similar degree of cooperation. Tribal women who are involved in animal husbandry report that their husbands make decisions regarding their business. Similarly, women who have received professional training outside their villages have reported that their in-laws have restricted their activities. The paper is based its argument on empirical study, and both Primary and secondary data are collected for further analysis from study village Bolpur, West Bengal.