Women’s dilemma – Career or family?
Discrimination is also a contributory factor to the lack of females in the job market.
SHAH ALAM - The dilemma of women choosing between a career or a housewife’s life is one of the main factors in the low participation of this group in the job market, said Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Industrial and Community Network Affairs Education Faculty Deputy Dean.
Dr Khairul Azhar Jamaludin said studies within and outside the country showed the issues of child car and pregnancy, in addition to inflexible working hours contributed to the withdrawal of women from the working world.
He said in a household, women often gave priority to their husband's work as a determinant of family life even if they had a higher education.
"The husband's job, especially with sufficient or large income, causes most women to feel that work is not a priority, instead choosing to focus on being a housewife.
"Apart from that, there is also a study that found facilities that do not support this group as a mother and a working woman at the same time, resulting in them being more comfortable being housewives.
"This situation should be avoided and given attention in efforts to empower women's involvement in the industry," he told Sinar.
Khairul said discrimination in the hiring of women by some employers was also believed to be a contributory factor to the lack of females in the job market.
He said most employers choose to employ single men and women rather than pregnant or newly married women as there was no need for the women to take long leave due to childbirth.
However, according to him, the issue of productivity and maternity leave should not be the main factor in the selection of employees.
"In general, the abilities and competence of women cannot be denied because based on statistics from the Statistics Department, almost half of all women in the job market are in skilled and professional fields.
"This proves women’s ability. In this regard, employers need to think of a workforce management plan according to the needs of women who are also important individuals in the family system as housewives and mothers of children," he said.
Due to more flexible working hours, Khairul said, many women were more likely to choose to work for themselves or venture into entrepreneurship.
He said the latest data provided by the Entrepreneurship Research and Development (CEDAR) Centre showed that 20 per cent of entrepreneurs in the micro, small and medium enterprise sector were women.
"In my view, the selection to be in this field is partly due to the role of women after marriage and at the same time the desire to also contribute to the economy and family income.
"Women's abilities are comparable to men and their involvement in careers is also possible because they want to fulfill their desire to be independent.
"In fact, the role of women in society has also actually changed because they are no longer associated as housewives alone but with the academic qualifications they have, there are opportunities for a more meaningful involvement," he said.
