One of the key factors that will contribute to the economic development of the country is the availability of labour. Equality and balance are the important principles to consider in planning the socio-economic development of a country. This report focuses on the drivers and measures taken by Malaysia to address the gender gap challenge in the employment market. The constraints that women face must be taken into consideration when developing new policies that better support workers and their families while stimulating job creation in Malaysia.
Gender equality or equity is not only a fundamental human right but a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) “Gender equality, equality between men and women…does not mean that women and men have to become the same, but that their rights, responsibilities, and opportunities will not depend on whether they were born male or female. Gender equity means fair treatment of men and women according to their respective needs. This may include equal treatment or treatment that is different, but considered equivalent in terms of rights, benefits, obligations, and opportunities.”
According to the European Union, Gender Equality is a concept that recognises that women and men have different needs and power, and that these differences should be identified and addressed in a manner that rectifies the imbalances between the sexes. This may include equal treatment or treatment that is different but considered equivalent in terms of rights, benefits, obligations and opportunities.
The term ‘gender equity’ has sometimes been used in a way that perpetuates stereotypes about women’s role in society, suggesting that women should be treated ‘fairly’ by the roles that they carry out. This understanding risks perpetuating unequal gender relations and solidifying gender stereotypes that are detrimental to women.
Based on the ‘Empowering Women at Work – Government Laws and Policies for Gender Equality’ study, women’s involvement in various economic sectors has progressed over the last decades. More women can be seen serving in parliament and leadership positions, while laws are also being reformed to help advance gender equality. Despite these gains, many challenges remain. With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, some of the progress made are being reversed. The coronavirus outbreak exacerbates existing inequalities for women across every sphere – from health and economy to security and social protection.
Women are disproportionately affected by the pandemic in multiple ways. Before the pandemic, 1.3 billion, or 44.3 per cent, of women worldwide were in employment, compared to 2 billion, or 70 per cent, of men.6 In 2020, 527 million women, representing 41 per cent of total women in employment, were employed in sectors at high risk of severe COVID-19 impact in terms of job losses and reduction in working hours, compared to 35 per cent in the case of total male employment.7 This suggests that women’s employment is likely to be hit more severely by the current crisis than men’s.
HRD Corp through the National Human Resource Centre (NHRC) has organised a forum titled ‘Gender Equity, Women Empowerment, and its Impact on The Labour Market’ together with its Research Fellows on 15 September 2022. The forum featured panellists Puan Fadzilah Yusof from Invictus Leadership Consulting, Professor Dr Balakrishnan from University Malaysia Kelantan (UMK), Mr Roshan Thiran from Leaderonomics, and a moderator from the NHRC, Puan Iryna Enastasia.
Women’s Participation in Economic Sector in Malaysia
According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM), women’s Labour Force Participation Rate for 2020 was 55.3 per cent. However, compared to neighbouring countries such as Thailand (66.8 per cent) and Singapore (69.7 per cent), Malaysia ranks significantly lower. In quarter 2, DoSM’s Labour Force Statistics Report in 2021 stated that the number of persons outside the labour force rose 1.5 per cent (+109.6 thousand persons) quarter-on-quarter, reaching 7.43 million persons (Q1 2021: 7.32 million persons).
More than half of persons outside the labour force are from the female population, constituting 68.8 per cent or equivalent to 5.11 million persons. Meanwhile, the male population accounted for 31.2 per cent or equivalent to 2.32 million persons.
Women make up half the nation’s population and account for over 55 per cent of enrolment in local universities. However, Malaysian women’s labour force participation rate is just over 54 per cent. This is because, they tend to exit the workforce in their late 20s to early 30s, usually due to family commitments. The panellists emphasised that a certain mindset is often to blame for women leaving the workforce. Malaysian women are used to thinking that they are better at home instead of the office; hence their priorities are family instead.
Nevertheless, in Malaysia, the gender gap has narrowed significantly over the past several decades. It can be seen through the changes in women’s roles, both in absolute and relative terms, from major socio-economic aspects of the country’s development such as rising rates of female labour force participation, gains in women’s productive activities, their improved economic standing and their increased participation in education.
The female labour force participation rate in Malaysia has increased significantly over the past few years, from 55.6 per cent in 2021 to 55.8 per cent in 2022 which encompassed 8.9 million (Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Portal). Despite a significant increase, this rate is still relatively low when considering Malaysia’s level of development as well as in comparison to other Southeast Asian countries. The remarkable expansion of Malaysia’s economy has been accompanied by an increase in the number of women participating in the country’s formal labour force as well as a variety of other activities.
In 2017, a substantial participation rate of working women in the Services sector was 72 per cent, whilst the employment rate for men in the same sector was just 52 per cent. This reflects the growing number of women who are actively participating in the industry. (Source: Institut Maklumat & Analisis Pasaran Buruh (ILMIA).
Gender Gap in Labour Force Participation in Malaysia
A report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 2017 titled ‘World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends for Women’ revealed that one of the main factors that influence women’s decision to participate in the labour force is gender role conformity . The deep-seated belief that has been embedded in local social norms have created a stigma that views “men as the main breadwinners and women as homemakers”. These gender stereotypes have impeded Malaysia’s progress in achieving gender equality in the workplace. A survey conducted by the Women’s Aid Organisation and Vase.ai reported that 56 per cent of Malaysian women had encountered at least one or more forms of gender discrimination in the workplace. This figure indicates that there is room for improvement in terms of providing equitable access to employment, earnings, and treatment of working women.
Other than that, an existing challenge on the legal barricades, such as the absence of certain rights and protection for women in the legislation is also one of the key factors that discourages women from joining the labour force. Through the recent amendment of the Employment Act 2022, the Ministry of Human Resources has addressed this challenge, by introducing family-friendly policies in the workplace to improve the state of gender equality
It is highly anticipated that Malaysia seems to have gradually caught up with global levels of protection for workers. The next question and even more challenging to address is how the implementation phase will take place among the industries and employers in Malaysia.
Gender Equity and Women Empowerment Initiatives in Malaysia
The underutlisation of women in labour is a pressing issue that must be addressed by the government. The government’s approach and policy will ensure that the issue will not negatively impact the country’s overall labour market efficiency and economic growth in the long term.
In 2001, the Ministry of Women and Family Development was established as a coordinating agency for the development of women and families in Malaysia. The Ministry has embarked on a strategy of making gender mainstream. This was done to ensure that the concerns and experiences of women and disadvantaged communities are integrated into the design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of policies and programmes in all spheres. As part of the gender mainstreaming process, the ministry also conducted a gender sensitisation process for policymakers, planners and implementers.
The Department of Women’s Development, as the implementing agency under the Ministry of Women and Family Development has been strengthened. Women Development Offices were set up at the state level to further enhance the status of women at the grassroots level. The Women Development Offices work closely with women at the grass-roots level to address women’s issues. Later, the government also established the National Council on Women and Family Development at the state, parliamentary and district levels.
The Council acts as a coordinating body for issues regarding women and family development between the federal and state governments. They do this by identifying issues and problems which affect women and families and formulating programmes and activities to increase women’s participation in development.
Former finance minister, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said it will be compulsory for all major companies to have one female director on their board by September 2022, and for all other listed companies by January 2023 which could be a stimulus to push for greater female representation.
Funding of RM230 million will be provided through the Program DANANITA under MARA and TEKUNITA under TEKUN to assist women entrepreneurs who are also affected by COVID-19. This will be followed by measures to increase the capacity of their business. The government also intends to extend individual income tax relief of up to RM3 million for the payment of nursery fees and kindergartens until 2023.
More efforts have been made to mainstream gender perspectives into the public and private sectors. The Ministry has implemented gender awareness programmes to train government leaders, especially policymakers as well as leaders at the grassroots level to be gender receptive . The Ministry also conducts training for the poor, including single mothers and women-headed households.
Additionally, Malaysia has always embraced sustainable development in the national agenda. In this regard, the commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has been mapped together with the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP) to align strategies and initiatives to support the SDGs.
The roadmap considers the nation’s capacities and capabilities in achieving the identified goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda. By developing cohesive sustainable development strategies and mainstreaming a gender perspective in all government policies and programmes at all levels, gender equality and women empowerment can be achieved.
HRD Corp’s Initiatives for Gender Equity and Women Empowerment
As a key player in the human resources landscape, HRD Corp has also participated in the effort to bolster women’s participation in the labour market through upskilling and reskilling. As of August 2022, out of 514,732 total individuals who attended training, 41.5 per cent were women. When compared to the previous year, 340,805 individuals attended training with 41.1 per cent of them being women. The year 2022 has recorded an increment of 0.4 per cent for women’s participation in its third quarter of the year compared to the end-year record in 2021. (Source: Human Resource Development Corporation, Training Grant).
At the peak of the pandemic, HRD Corp launched several initiatives, including Place & Train, B40 Development, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Development, and Gerak Insan Gemilang (GIG). Each of the initiatives described is part of PENJANA, which has received great feedback from the public, particularly women.
Statistics showed that 51 per cent of the 89,000 trainees who registered for the various programmes were women (Source: Human Resource Development Corporation, Strategic Initiatives). It is important to note that over 60 per cent of the trainees who signed up for the GIG programme were female. This demonstrates that a significant number of women are increasingly interested in working independently as freelancers and want to do so on their own terms. In addition, based on the e-LATiH database, as of August 2022, 240,000 trainees have enrolled in the learning platform. Out of which, 136,800, or 57 per cent are women (Source: Human Resource Development Corporation, e-LATiH).
Women’s agenda continues to be an important focus area, particularly in economic development. From time to time, targets are being set to increase the number of women in key decision-making positions. Measures have been focused on improving the female labour force participation rate through the implementation of flexible working arrangements, as well as expansion of minimum maternity leave and providing better childcare facilities. The implementation of flexible working arrangements is always encouraged in both the private and public sectors.
The Government through the Ministry of Human Resources (MoHR) has taken a progressive stride in ensuring women’s rights in the employment sectors are protected. This is reflected in the recent amendment of the Employment Act 2022. The new amendment has a specific clause that addresseses discrimination in employment which includes gender discrimination cases.
In addition, maternity leave has been pushed to increase from 60 to 90 days, while 7 days of paternity leave has been granted to further support working mothers and their spouses. The new amendment also included provisions to allow equal opportunity for women’s participation in the labour market by repealing the prohibition of night work and underground work.
Special protections have also been extended to include a female employee who is pregnant or is suffering from an illness arising out of her pregnancy from being terminated by the employer or served with a notice of termination. These provisions are expected to eliminate legal barricades against women and at the same time allow more room to promote gender equality. These changes are expected to be implemented in January 2023.
According to World Bank’s 2012 World Development Report: Gender Equality and Development, when gender equality is achieved, it can enhance economic productivity, improve development outcomes for the next generation, and make institutions and policies more representative. Many gender disparities remain even as countries develop, which calls for sustained and focused public action. Corrective policies will yield substantial development payoffs when focus is on persistent gender inequalities that matter most for welfare. To be effective, these measures must target the root causes of inequality.
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