The landscape for women’s safety risks and rights is an ever changing one, but in many parts of the world, those changes are currently predominantly negative - something employers should be aware of in their duty of care to female staff.

Ahead of International Women’s Day on Friday, travel risk management provider, Healix, is calling for organisations to consider the unique risks faced by women in the workplace, and in particular, whilst travelling to countries where women’s rights have deteriorated.

Femicide is on the rise in countries including Austria, India, Somalia and Italy. In Vienna earlier this year, five women were killed in the span of 24 hours by men. In India, femicide is considered an epidemic within the country, as women are often killed by their partners or by their families. There have been protests erupting in Somalia as femicide rates rise exponentially. In Italy, there were over 100 femicide victims in 2023 who were either killed by their partners or through a random attack. Elsewhere, Iran is still enforcing punitive measures against women who defy compulsory hijab laws and businesses that do not enforce them on their premises. Female travellers should be aware of these laws and follow them accordingly if spending time in Iran.

In more positive developments, Australia has increased support for women’s rights globally and continues to be a safe place for women. Brazil’s supreme court is meanwhile one step closer to decriminalising abortion which is a major move in the right direction for achieving equality and equity within Brazil. And in the European Union, progress is being made on a treaty to end violence and harassment at work. The treaty lays out international legal standards for preventing and responding to violence and harassment in the workplace. It ensures governments have comprehensive national laws against harassment and violence at work and ensures there is proper support for survivors. This treaty would ensure a safer working environment for women in the future.

Raquel Recuero, regional security manager, Asia-Pacific at Healix commented: “Before deploying female members of staff overseas, risk managers at organisations should seek expert advice on local laws and customs regarding women’s rights regarding dress codes and cultural and other regulations that may apply exclusively to women. Compliance with local laws and customs will avoid potentially heavy penalties and mitigate the risk of being targeted.”

“Many hotels also now have different safety strategies in place, particularly for lone females, such as safer room allocations, women-only floors with female security, escorts and more. Talk to the hotel where your female employees will be staying, to see what they have in place.”

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