Empowering her future — paving the path to workplace gender equality

As we celebrate Women’s Month, it’s crucial to reflect on the significant strides we’ve made towards gender transformation in society. We have come a long way from the 1960s, when popular magazines published articles on how to be a better housewife and perpetuated the stereotype of the “weak” female. This was reflective of a patriarchal perception that demoted women to the “feminine” and “domestic” sphere, viewing them less capable of engaging in economic activities.

Today, in many settings, the narrative around gender roles has undergone a significant transformation. Young girls are increasingly being told that their aspirations can extend far beyond traditional roles. They are encouraged to dream about a future filled with vast possibilities: “You can be a doctor, a scientist, or even a CEO.”

This message marks a powerful departure from past expectations, highlighting a shift towards empowering women to pursue ambitious career paths and personal goals – areas that were previously designated primarily for males. They are encouraged to see themselves as equals.

Despite these advances, the journey towards true gender equality remains incomplete. The reality for many women globally, including in South Africa, is that even as they advance in various professional fields or excel in areas traditionally dominated by men, they continue to bear the disproportionate burden of childcare and domestic responsibilities.

In most households, women are still expected to manage the home, care for children, and balance these duties with their professional lives. This dual expectation persists, highlighting a critical gap in our approach to gender transformation.

While the expectations for women to contribute to household income and partake in economic activities have vastly changed, the expectations of how men should contribute to domestic and childcare responsibilities are lagging.

To illustrate, societal expectations often differ significantly between genders when it comes to balancing work and family responsibilities. For example, men are rarely questioned about childcare when they commit to job responsibilities that require travel or long hours. In contrast, women in similar situations frequently face inquiries, or even criticism, about who will care for their children in their absence. This disparity highlights the ongoing double standards in how society views the roles of men and women.

This leads us to a significant dilemma: while women are encouraged to aspire to high-level careers and pursue their professional ambitions, they are still predominantly viewed as the primary caregivers.

This perception places a disproportionate burden on them, requiring women to manage both extensive caregiving responsibilities and their careers. This dual obligation severely restricts their ability to compete on equal terms with male colleagues in the same professional fields.

In South Africa, for every hour a man dedicates to unpaid care work, including childcare, a woman contributes eight hours of similar effort. Recent studies, including the United Nations Women Covid-19 Rapid Gender Assessment in South Africa, have revealed that the gender gap in time allocated to care work has widened since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Globally, women perform 75% of unpaid work – more than three times what the average man spends, which significantly cuts into their time for recreational and economic activities. The pandemic has once again highlighted the disproportionate childcare burden shouldered by women and emphasised the urgent need to reform gender norms both in the household and broader society.

To truly transform gender dynamics, our focus must extend beyond just women; it must also include men. Transforming the roles of women in society cannot occur without similarly transforming the roles of men.

Discussions on gender transformation often primarily concentrate on how women’s roles should evolve to enhance their inclusion in the economy and the private sector. However, as women become more involved in economic activities, it creates a gap in child and household care.

Therefore, it is crucial to challenge the traditional perceptions of men, transforming how society views their roles in households and broader society. Equal-involved fathers should be the norm, not the exception, as we strive to redefine traditional norms. 

To truly support the transformation of gender roles, particularly for men, policy and legislation must evolve to facilitate this change. This is especially true in the workplace, where policies on childcare often exclude men, preventing them from contributing to childcare responsibilities.

Australian journalist and commentator Annabel Crabb sums it up well: “Why, after all these decades of campaigning, reform, research and thought about how we can best get women into the workplace, are we so slow to pick up that the most important next step is how to get men out of it?”

A significant step towards this goal is to promote male involvement in childcare from the outset by implementing improved paternal benefits. Studies have demonstrated that women’s employment rates in the private sector are higher in countries that mandate paternity leave.

Currently, South Africa offers fathers a mere 10 days of parental leave, subtly reinforcing the outdated notion that “childcare is women’s work”.

Achieving true equality between mothers and fathers in South Africa involves more than just implementing gender-neutral policies; it requires a cultural shift towards collaboration between parents. Legislation and policy can only go so far in remedying the situation.

It is vital that families, individuals and workplaces pursue personal and structural reforms to enhance women’s economic empowerment. This includes transforming gender norms of care and creating workplaces that support both mothers and fathers.

During this Women’s Month, as we celebrate the progress made, we must also commit to challenging the stereotypes that confine men and women to outdated roles, hindering our progress towards a truly equal society.

We need a community where roles are not defined by gender but by personal choice and capabilities, and where both men and women can equally share the responsibilities and joys of both home and work life. 

Let’s not only celebrate women’s achievements but also actively engage in discussions and actions that include men in the journey towards gender equality.

The transformation we seek in society must foster a more inclusive, equitable world for all, across generations, redefining what it means to be a partner and a parent in a society that values equality in every sphere. DM

Dr Stefani du Toit is a senior researcher at the Institute for Life Course Health Research at Stellenbosch University. She writes in her personal capacity.