Notes from Emma Degraffenried v. General Motors Assembly Division: Making a Case for Laws Curbing Discrimination for Indian Women

The structures of discrimination have been built on the foundation of complex identities, there is no single variable which faces the ire of all the prejudices a society possesses, however, in 1989 Kimberle Crenshaw gave for the concept of intersectionality which examined the interconnected nature of identities on which an individual can be discriminated against, in words of black British Scholar and sociologist, how these variables articulated with one another, forming a complex identity, nowhere other than in the fields of employment and labour can such discrimination be observed, there have been countless instances around the world wherein marginalised women of their respective nation have been able to secure better rights as compared to their Indian counterparts, this paper will argue that Indian women, especially women who are prone to be marginalised due to their layered identities, are discriminated against, this paper will further propound as to how international conventions like CEDAW can help bring about development of a platform which might act as a catalyst for a more profound change in the framework of employment, this paper will take the example of working conditions during nightshift for women in order to illustrate the disparity in opportunities faced by oppressed genders.