Exploring the Division of Labour in the Family: Insights from Women in the Service Sector in Darjeeling Town

Abstract

 The colonial history of Darjeeling Hills had a considerable influence on the development and settlement of Darjeeling Town, notably in terms of women's contexts such as migration, forms of economic engagement for women, and the introduction of formal education for women, among other aspects. When we look into the region's history, we find that women have worked in a number of occupations, although primarily in informal work, and they have contributed to the region's economy and gradual societal changes in their own capacities. Despite the fact that women have long worked in public spaces in the hills of Darjeeling, the prevalent traditional norm in the region recognizes the home as a woman's primary space. Even while women in the hills may have substantially distinct socioeconomic backgrounds, they are nevertheless subjected to some dominant gender norms. Women who work outside have the obligation to divide their time between paid and unpaid domestic work, since parenting and domestic tasks have always been considered as women's work in the hills, whether in towns or in villages. Among the various challenges and debates surrounding 'working women,' one key question that arises is the link between women's participation in paid work and the gendered distribution of labour in the household. As a result, this article seeks to understand the division of labour, one component of the larger 'working women's question', in families of women employed in the service sector. As such, in-depth perspectives of ten married women who represent a segment of this social group in the Town of Darjeeling have been analysed.