A survey conducted by an Australian university and the Australian government has showed there is support for gender equality in Malaysia, both in terms of attitudes and behaviour.
This was revealed during a panel discussion held at the official residence of the Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia Danielle Heinecke.
In conjunction with International Women’s Day celebrations, the discussion was centred on a gender equality survey published under the title: “Social norms, attitudes and practice survey” (SNAPS).
Conducted since 2018, the biannual survey was most recently published last January and included Malaysia for the first time.
The survey was conducted by the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at the Australian National University, in partnership with Investing in Women (IW), an initiative of the Australian government.
Discussion panellists were IW Campaigns and Communities of Practice director Kim Arveen Patria; TalentCorp Group Government Engagement and Facilitation for Women, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion & Work-Life Practices senior vice-president Mahuran Saro Sariki; and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Kuala Lumpur managing director and partner Nurlin Mohd Salleh. Heinecke moderated the session.
During the discussion, Patria, who is from the Philippines, said men must be involved in gender equality conversations.
“When we talk about encouraging women into the workforce, for example, we must also talk about getting men to participate and reduce the multiple burdens shouldered by women.
“We need to get male leaders to put their hands up and say, ‘I’m taking a flexible day today because my child is sick,” he said.
According to Mahuran, the Malaysian government has various programmes to address the gender gap.
“One of them is YES! Wo+Men (which stands for Young Employable Student for Young Women and Men).
“This initiative by TalentCorp helps university students to make informed decisions about balancing professional development and personal commitments.
“There are also tax incentives for women who have returned to work after breaks, and for companies who hire these returnees.
“Companies who implement flexible work arrangements and paid caregiving leave are also eligible for tax incentives,” said Mahuran.
Praising the incentives, Nurlin said BCG studies showed that global gross domestic product could see an increase by up to 20% when there was more female employment participation and entrepreneurship.
“Household income rose by 82% when both spouses are earning,” she said.
In terms of investment, women-led businesses were most likely to see 35% higher returns compared to male-dominated organisations.
“If you think about a country such as Malaysia – as we are moving towards an ageing population, – if we do not bring women into the workforce, we will be facing a huge issue,” said Nurlin.
On encouraging women to join the workforce, she said organisations could conduct studies on how to create better work environments.
“At BCG, we ask if our people feel a sense of belonging and if they are supported in a safe and inclusive environment.
“The reason why we do this is because people feel happier to work in such environments and will most likely stay on.”
On the making of a successful career woman, Nurlin, a mother of four, said this required the right job, pay, working model and a supportive home setup.
“The last requires a supportive partner, a balanced lifestyle to accommodate any caregiving responsibilities, be it children or family members, and a structural setup that makes it sustainable for a woman to pursue her goals.
“Then there is the woman herself, who must have the ambition to progress,” she added.
During the discussion, Nurlin stressed that male mentors and role models also played an important part by encouraging women to aim higher.
“If I’d had my way, I would have been a stay-at-home mother.
“Up till today, I still think about going for an early retirement when things get a bit too hard.
“But having role models – who are men – saying, ‘Why don’t you aspire to be more’ and ‘why are you giving up so soon?’ – that keeps me going,” she added.
The SNAPS survey can be found at tinyurl.com/mw6nyfhs
