Woman and social security: From needs-based charity to rights-based social justice

Social security is an investment in human resources, which can provide overall security for a person within the family, workplace, and society. The right to social security is an indispensable human right and an essential precondition for the realization of all human rights, which also represents an essential transformation from needs-based charity to rights-based social justice. Social security systems provided for by states consist of social insurance as well as development programs, which provide benefits for employees and their families by employment contributions, and/or social assistance programs which provide non-contributory benefits designed to provide minimum levels of social security to people. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes the right to “social security” in articles 22, which states that:"Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality. In the light of the wisdom of the philosophy of “Social Security” this paper examines the conceptual framework of social security from ‘multi-dimensional gender perspective’ and focuses on its missing dimensions with reference to the protection, empowerment, growth and development of women in India; hence the basic purpose of this paper is to understand the right to social security and development from woman’s perspective. The Researchers have further attempted to expand the understanding of right to social security as human right from the perspective of “gender” which helped them to reach a conclusion that, “the social safety nets are designed and developed to protect every member of the society irrespective gender, caste, creed, race and unlike many countries, India has yet not realized the dream of a socially secure, and egalitarian society based on the ideals of Justice, Equality, Liberty and Fraternity.”