Disempowered despite Wage Work

By employing a system of production using contractors and home-based workers, the beedi industry is able to gain tremendous profit with little inputs in infrastructure and comprehensive benefits to labour. The construction of home workers as housewives and homework as a practice that allows a woman to care for children and perform her household tasks while earning much needed income completely detracts from the fact that not only do women put in long hours to fulfil production targets set by employers but have no idea as to how they arrive at the wage levels they set. Women's subordinate status as workers is built into the production process.