Instead of reinforcing the stereotype that unpaid care work is women’s work, the government should introduce policies that promote shared parenting and care responsibilities, say experts. Photo: 123rf.com
On International Women’s Day last Friday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that a Civil Service Remuneration System (CSRS) is being drawn up to consider shorter working hours for women employees to enable them to “better care for their families”. He admitted that this “flexibility” might involve "a different or lower pay rates for women”.
While Anwar’s intention may have been “to enhance the contribution of women”, Universiti Malaya’s senior lecturer and Master of Gender Studies Programme co-ordinator Dr Lai Suat Yan says that the rationale behind the proposal – as well as the lack of clarity and details of it – “raises more concerns than it offers answers”.
The proposal is problematic as it is couched within the traditional mindset of childcare mainly being the responsibility of women, says Lai. Photo: Dr Lai Suat Yan“The concept of flexible work typically refers to the arrangement where employees have a flexible schedule to do their work, for example, starting and ending at a different time, or working from home instead of at the office.
“But, in the example given by the Prime Minister, it seems to suggest part-time employment with fewer work hours and a lower pay, without the options of working from home or a flexible work schedule (for doing the same amount of work).
“This is of concern as it means a more precarious work situation with less security and benefits, such as pension, health coverage, etc for women,” says Lai.
Another reason why the part-time work proposal must be re-examined is because it perpetuates gender stereotypical roles: that housework and childcare is primarily the work of mothers and not a shared responsibility of both parents.
“The proposal is problematic as it is couched within the traditional mindset of childcare mainly being the responsibility of women rather than the shared responsibility of husbands and wives, an issue of concern to many women,” says Lai.
She adds that it will also impact the gender pay gap negatively as women’s pay will be lower, their job less secure and having less social protection.
“On the occasion of International Women’s Day, it would have been more fitting to offer women jobs that come with better job security, pay and benefits and for the announcement of policies and arrangements that support the shared responsibility of men and women in childcare and unpaid work at home,” says Lai.
According to her, a better solution to encourage more women to be in the labour force, and to improve Malaysia’s ranking on the Gender Gap Index is for flexi work that provides women or persons with care responsibilities the choice to work from home or to have flexi working hours in which they are hired full-time with job security, good pay rate and social protection.
Poor report card score
Malaysia currently ranks 13 out of 19 countries in the East Asia and Pacific region, and 102 out of 146 countries globally with a score of 0.682 on the Gender Gap Index 2023. The index measures gender equality based on the gap between women and men across four areas: health, education, economy and politics. The value ranges between 0 (complete inequality) and 1 (complete equality). While there is no country that has achieved total gender equality (score of 1), Iceland has the highest ranking at 0.91.
The best way to help workplaces become more gender equal is to 'recognise, reduce, redistribute, reward and represent care work, says Shanthi. Photo: The Star/Ming TeohImplementing part-time work for women may seem to be a good idea for the benefit of women who need to take care of their families.
But in actual fact, the advantage is only superficial and such a short-sighted decision will lead to an increased gender pay gap and lower Malaysia’s already low ranking on the Gender Gap Index, says gender studies expert Prof Dr Shanthi Thambiah.
Instead of asking female civil servants to work part-time for less pay because of their care burden, the better way to deal with this is to “recognise, reduce, redistribute, reward and represent care work”, she says, referring to UN Women’s Toolkit On Paid And Unpaid Care Work: From 3Rs To 5Rs (https://bitly.ws/3fGWy).
“The Toolkit serves as an introductory reference – a ‘how-to’ guide for those working on care as a means to achieve gender equality, the empowerment of women and girls, the Sustainable Development Goals, and to promote the rights and well-being of care providers and their recipients,” she adds.
Introducing policies for women to work less and earn less will, in the long run, have negative ramifications on women’s financial security because they will have less savings when they grow old, says Shanthi.
“Furthermore, it may result in incurring more cost to the government in the future, in terms of an additional safety net requirement for older women living in poverty due to low savings for old age,” she says.
Izzat believes working from home is advantageous because he can get his work done, and still be there for his family. Photo: The Virtual ConnexionRecruitment consultancy The Virtual Connexion’s chief operating officer Izzat Khiruddin encourages the government to introduce hybrid work environments for all its employees instead of just women.
“Care is a universal right and responsibility and essential for families, societies and economies to function and thrive and hence, it shouldn’t be just the responsibility of women.
“Rather than measure someone’s pay based on how many hours they worked and then reduce their pay based on that, I think the government should provide a work-from-home or a hybrid work environment where women and men can still do the same work remotely and get the same pay,” says Izzat.
The father of a nine-year-old girl himself works from home and says that this is advantageous because not only is he able to get his work done, but it doesn’t detract from him being able to be there for his family.
“I get to spend time with my daughter, see her grow up, be there for her when she is ill and bring her to the clinic, and even fetch her to/from school,” he says.
Retaining the women
According to data (2023) from the Department of Statistics Malaysia, the female labour force participation rate (LFPR) stands at 56.2% while the male LFPR rate is at 82.8%.
This highlights the gender disparity within the Malaysian workforce.
In response to the continuing gender imbalance, Talent Corporation Malaysia (an agency under the Human Resources Ministry) organised the Women Career Convention 2023 to empower women to achieve their professional goals while creating a workplace that values diversity and inclusion.
At the convention, TalentCorp group chief executive officer Thomas Hiew said that they are working towards increasing the female labour workforce to 60% and have a Career Comeback Programme which offers a tax incentive extension until 2027 for women who return to work after a career break.
To encourage women to remain in the workforce, we need to have work-life balance, good parental leave policies, and find out why women are dropping out of the workforce (such as care responsibilities for their children, aged/ill parents, or disabled family members), says Shanthi.
There are two main influencing factors why women drop out of the workforce, she says.
“When they are in their 30s, they drop out to care for their children. Then, later when they are in their 40s or 50s, it is to care for their aged parents. There is a rise in the latter because Malaysia is an aging population.
“This is a waste because these women are dropping out at the peak of their career when they should be rising – and all because of care responsibilities.
“Even if they earn well, they give half of their salary to pay for someone to care for their elderly parents. So, many end up retiring to take care of their parents.”
Not about qualifications
Shanthi highlights that it’s not about education because a lot of women who are highly-educated also make that choice to leave the workforce to take on unpaid care responsibilities.
Then, when they return to the workplace after their children are grown up, they have to start all over again, and their wages and positions are lower than if they had stayed and continued working.
All this contributes to the gender pay gap, says Shanthi.
It’s important for companies to have care infrastructures such as nurseries in the workplace, says Prema. Photo: The Virtual ConnexionPrema Mehrotra, The Virtual Connexion’s chief operating officer, reiterates the solutions to encourage and retain more women (and men) in the labour force: supportive work environments as well as support and incentives for child/elder care.
It’s important for companies to have care infrastructures such as nurseries in the workplace, says Prema.
Companies can also implement a hybrid or work-from-home system, she says, adding that this should be a benefit or perk for the employees across the board and not just the women because unpaid care work is the responsibility of everyone.
Hybrid or work-from-home systems are crucial for retaining talent, particularly women in the workforce, for several reasons, she says.
“Firstly, if offers flexibility. Women and some men may have additional responsibilities outside of work, such as caregiving and household duties.
“A hybrid or remote work model allows them to better balance these responsibilities with their professional obligations.”
“Secondly, it provides work-life balance. Remote work offers greater flexibility, which can help alleviate stress and burnout.
This balance is particularly important for women and men who may have multiple roles and responsibilities to juggle.”
