INTERACTIVE: More companies adopting family-friendly policies

Family friendly policies at the workplace do not only benefit female employees but also the company and society at large. Photo: 123rf

PETALING JAYA: More companies in Malaysia are recognising the importance of supporting working mothers and implementing family-friendly policies, says employment platforms.

Paul Thomas, chief people and culture officer at SEEK Asia, Jobstreet’s parent company, said as Malaysia seeks to become a more developed, high-income nation, it is clear that more women are needed in the workforce.

“Current statistics from the Statistics Department of Malaysia show that the workforce participation rate for women is just over 54%, while for men, it's around 80%.

“This means that almost half of the women who can work are not joining the workforce, with many citing their responsibilities as the primary caregiver and homemaker in their household as the reason,” he said.

Thomas said many family-friendly policies are now being adopted at workplaces to enable mothers to re-join the workforce and seek both economic and personal fulfilment.

“With these initiatives in place, more women can enjoy the benefits of working while still balancing their family responsibilities, contributing to Malaysia's economic growth, and breaking down gender stereotypes in the workplace,” he added.

He also said that according to a survey by Jobstreet last year, more companies in Malaysia are planning to provide family-friendly benefits in 2023.

This includes, among others, work activities or events extended to family members, medical protection or insurance for family members, nursing rooms or playrooms at the workplace, and children education allowance.

Thomas added that one of the top qualities that working mothers look for in employers is flexible working hours and the option to work from home.

“This allows them to drop their kids off at daycare or school before work and pick them up afterwards, as well as to run essential errands.

“Beyond this, flexibility also means being accommodating in finding the best schedule, such as setting up meetings within core working hours that is not too early and not too late in the workday,” he said.

He also said that as more companies are switching back to fully onsite work, SEEK continues to stand firm in providing workers with hybrid work options.

“We strive to provide an empowering, trusting, and conducive workplace for working parents,” he said.

According to LinkedIn, in a global survey released last year, the majority of women (64%) have experienced a career break at some point, with the top reasons including parental leave (22%), medical leave (17%), and mental health reasons (14%).

“In January 2022 on LinkedIn, 70% of career break-related searches and 67% of career break-related posts globally came from female members.

“Women are taking longer to re-enter the workforce. In the United States, there was a 39% increase in the length of time in which women took a career break.

“Many who took a career break were parents who were faced with having to choose between work and family,” it said.

However, LinkedIn revealed that 48% of hirers think the biggest mistake candidates make when discussing their career breaks is undervaluing themselves in terms of compensation or seniority of role.

According to LinkedIn, a skills-first approach could help increase female representation, especially in occupations that currently have low female representation.

“If companies hire for skills versus traditional experience, the talent pool of women will increase 24% more than men globally in jobs where women are underrepresented,” it said.