A doctor said she needed to stop working and rest.Medical tests found that Sudha - who did not give her surname for fear of reprisals - had fibroids, which are non-cancerous growths that develop in or around the uterus.The drugs were rarely provided by medical professionals, in violation of labor laws, and the state government said it would monitor thequesting anonymity since he was presently conducting audits.“The pills they seem to be given are basically causing a hormonal imbalance in their bodies,” she said. “I myself would never swallow the pills - and dissuade my close friends working from taking them also.”Raja Shanmugam, head of the Tiruppur Exporter’s Association, said medicine was not normally provided to workers without a doctor’s prescription, and that factories only stocked basic medication for fevers or headaches and a balm for muscle pains. The prevalence ..”Two manufacturers’ associations representing hundreds of factories said protecting workers’ health was a priority. I also stay away from any pills,” she said, holding a bathroom vanity Manufacturers factory faded folder full of doctors’ notes and medical prescriptions.But two doctors who analysed the pills said they were non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs - similar to ibuprofen and Advil - that could help relieve menstrual cramps but were known to have possible harmful side-effects if taken frequently. “It is difficult but I manage.Growing pressure from big brands on suppliers to deliver clothes ever-quicker and cheaper is fuelling exploitation from a lack of bathroom breaks to verbal abuse, labor activists said.“I chose my health and pray everyday that I will recover completely soon.From then on she kept quiet and asked for painkillers but six months later felt her insides “burning” and fell ill, forcing her to take 10 days off work and lose wages. “But compliance, especially in smaller factories, is a problem. (Photo: File I Representational) Chennai: Sudha seldom thought about the pills she took to ease her period pains during 10-hour shifts as a seamstress in southern India.“My body feels weak after the last couple of years working in the factory,” Sudha added. cannot vouch for all factories, some of which are not our members.“In many instances, the toilets are deliberately kept dirty so that the women will refrain from using them and thereby not take restroom breaks.″(Some) workers take up to three days off during their periods and that impacts production,” said Balamurugan, who took pills during her periods at her old spinning mill job. The idea is to extract maximum work..Activists, academics and doctors have voiced concerns that female workers’ lives were being tightly controlled, from toilet breaks to periods, to keep production lines running as India’s garment sector faces ever greater demands from Western brands..“Unqualified supervisors doling out medicines should not be practiced,” he said, adding that medical dispensaries are legally required to be handled by a qualified nurse. is alarming.“We .“Factories keep a tab on the workers’ health, conducting regular blood tests to check haemoglobin levels and ensure nutritious food if workers have anaemia,” he added.But the fear of missing work and losing wages due to periods was a major worry for many female workers who said taking painkillers was the best way to ensure their output didn’t slip.“It is clearly unacceptable,” McAllister said.”At a clinic in Dindigul, doctor P Nalina Kumari said she treated many women from spinning mills and garment factories. And even though my health became worse, I needed to keep working to pay the bills.“Half my salary (Rs 6,000) would go in paying off the loan and a big amount on my trips to the doctor,” Sudha said.“The priority is always production,” said Prithviraj Sinnathambi, director of CARE-T, which promotes labor rights for garment workers in spinning mill workers..One “time keeper,” who spoke on condition of anonymity to protect her job, said her role mainly involved providing painkillers to the 4,000 female workers under her watch.”STIGMA AND SHAMESelvi does not like to talk about her periods. The invisible symptoms are erratic menstrual cycles, depression and in many cases difficulty in conceiving.Many of the women said it took them years to realise the damage the medication had done as they were never warned about side effects, with health problems ranging from depression and anxiety to urinary tract infections, fibroids, and miscarriages.”“CLEARLY UNACCEPTABLE”Officials from the Tamil Nadu state and the central government said they were not aware of pills being provided to workers.“Four years later, the salary is still the same, the work hours are the same and armed with her medicine box, the time keeper is always watching our every move.She could nbout 40,000 garment factories and spinning mills across Tamil Nadu employ more than 300,000 female workers, according to data from the government, but the true number could be far higher with thousands of informal workers uncounted.A Thomson Reuters Foundation expose based on interviews with about 100 women in Tamil Nadu’s multi-billion dollar garment industry found all of them were given unlabelled drugs at work for period pains, and more than half said their health suffered.”ACTION AFOOTIn response to ,000 cotton knitwear manufacturers among its members.“We have given clear instructions to our members to be sensitive during such times (menstruation),” said said their member factories did not give our medication for menstrual pains, and that drugs were not normally provided without a prescription.” end-of Tags: illegal pills, pain, tamil nadu, period, women Location: India, Tamil Nadu, Chennai (Madras)

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