Thanks for sharing your papers Amita.

You are right that when access to sanitation itself is still a challenge, it only exacerbates when one considers issues of incontinence and peri-menopausal needs.  I can imagine gaps for women workers in sectors that have recently seen the entry of women. I can think of women drivers and conductors of public buses, for example.  However, sanitation is not such a case. In the Indian sub-continent, it was predominantly women who cleaned bucket latrines. So the author of the article I shared is probably right in highlighting the issue of caste and gender that determines needs of which workers/employees are prioritised. 

I tend to agree with the finding of your paper that the sub-sector of equity and inclusion with a focus on rights of sanitation workers is not adequately researched. However, in practice it seems to have received some attention in the recent years, especially in Indian states where FSM has picked up. I am sure you are aware, but highlighting just in case you have missed and for other members. The work of UMC in Odisha, CEPT University in Maharashtra, IIHS in Tamil Nadu, and ASCI in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana has kept issues of sanitation workers at the centre and attempted to alleviate their working conditions.  

Let's continue this conversation and try to brainstorm about other gaps within the sub-sector of equity and inclusion. 

Regards
paresh

Hi Paresh,

I was doing a random search and just came across your post here. Yes this is something very much on my mind and something I am keen to dig deeper on. In a paper I wrote with Sally Cawood, Mariam Zaqout and Barbara Evans, we touch on this exact issue:

Frontiers | Sanitation work: Realizing equity and inclusion in WASH (frontiersin.org)  

It's absolutely vital for issues like MHM and incontinence- which just doesn't get any where near enough attention as it should in general, let alone for sanitation workers, who remain overlooked in 'inclusion' discourses. 

There were also reports we found that sanitation workers overall are being denied access to household toilets through the SBM. Quite astounding.

Whilst we were doing the work on this paper, I came across this by chance:

Bloody inconvenience: Menstrual health in waste worker communities - Arise (ariseconsortium.org)  

I'd be interested in discussing more with you as there are many gaps I'm identifying as I go deeper in trying to understand inclusion for sanitation workers.

Best wishes,
Amita

Dear All,
Sharing a  piece  from India. 

The women sanitation workers in Panaji, the capital of Goa do not themselves have access to toilets. Since public toilets are also not nearby, the workers prefer not to drink water (which lead to other medical conditions). When it can't be avoided the officers themselves ask them to relive behind a tree.
The author highlights two criteria that lead to this exclusion  – gender and caste by asking if men or officials at higher position would be asked to do the same.

Please share work that highlights how women sanitation workers access sanitation and the quality of facilities (if any). 

Regards
paresh