flexible working arrangements in malaysia and the participation of women in the labour force ...

285 Pages·2012·2.45 MB·English

FLEXIBLE WORKING ARRANGEMENTS IN MALAYSIA
AND THE PARTICIPATION OF WOMEN
IN THE LABOUR FORCE

By

GEETHA SUBRAMANIAM

A thesis
submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington
in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy

2011
ABSTRACT

The aim of this thesis is to shed light on possible reasons for the stagnation in the
participation rate of women in the Malaysian workforce by focusing on the phenomenon of
flexible working arrangements. This is researched in the context of the possibility of flexible
working arrangements helping women achieve work-life balance and how such work affects
their well-being. Using a mixed method approach, the study addresses three main questions:-
are Malaysian women interested in flexible working arrangements? would flexible working
arrangements be useful in bringing more women into the labour force? and what impacts do
flexible working arrangements have on their well-being?

The study was conducted in the Klang Valley, which has a total population of over
seven million people and is the heartland of Malaysia's industry and commerce. It employed
both quantitative and qualitative methods. For the quantitative approach, self-administered
questionnaires were distributed to women employees working in seven organisations which
have flexible working arrangements and seven organisations with fixed working
arrangements. A random sample of 415 female employees from 14 selected organisations in
the services sector were identified. To complement the statistical data, 30 women were
interviewed.

Findings from the logistic regression analysis revealed that flexible working
arrangements at the workplace are preferred by women who are more educated, earning a
higher income and are at the higher end of the occupational status. It further revealed that
flexible working arrangements will encourage more women to work in paid labour since they
have a better work-life balance and more empowerment.

The information gathered from the qualitative interviews concerned women’s well-
being in terms of work-life balance, empowerment and lifestyles. While most of the women
experienced work-life balance barriers, some common threads and themes revealed that
flexible working arrangements will be a good option towards achieving work-life balance
and had a positive effect on women’s well-being in terms of work-life balance and
household empowerment. The qualitative interviews showed that workplace flexibility can
improve the working women’s work-life balance, especially among married women with
young children and hence, encourage women to participate in paid labour.

In adopting a combination of theoretical approaches, it is argued that there is a
greater tendency for Malaysian married women to exit the labour force after having children
compared to most other countries and this is primarily due to their caring responsibilities,
lack of an enabling environment and the cultural and social factors particular to Malaysia.

The study found that flexible working arrangements are very varied in type and
cannot be treated as a single, comprehensive package which might be suitable for all women.
Further, the implementation of flexible working arrangements at the workplace would not be
alone sufficient to bring in more women into the labour force.

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PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS

A number of conference and journal papers have been produced from this thesis. The
papers are as follows:

Conference Papers

1. “Flexible Working Arrangements, Women and Work – A Malaysian
Perspective”.
Presented at “Equality, Diversity and Inclusiveness” Conference at Auckland
University, Auckland.
7-8 February 2011.

2. “Flexibility at Workplace – Can it bring change to a working woman’s
lifestyle?”
Presented at “Women in Asia” Conference at the Australian National
University, Canberra, Australia
29 September 2010 - 2 October 2010

3. “Working Arrangement and Its Effect on Family and Lifestyle”
Presented at the MACFEA Malaysian Association of Consumer & Family
Economics Conference in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.
13-14 July 2010

4. “Flexibility At The Workplace – Will More Malaysian Women Join The Labour
Force?”
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Kedah, Malaysia
1-2 June 2010.

Other Presentations

1. Flexible Working Arrangements and Women in Malaysia
Presented in Geography, Environment and Development, GED Seminar Series
at SGEES,
Faculty of Science, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
19 August 2010

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Journal Publications

1. Subramaniam, G., Maniam, B., & Ali, E. (2011) Can Workplace Flexibility
Have an Effect on Women’s Lifestyles and Work-Life Balance?
International Journal of Business Research (forthcoming)

2. Subramaniam,G., Maniam,B., & Ali,E. (2011).Perceived Costs and Benefits
of Workplace Flexibility – A Factor Analysis. Business Studies Journal
(forthcoming)

3. Subramaniam, G., Ali, E., & Overton, J. (2010). Are Malaysian Women
interested in Flexible Working Arrangements? Business Studies Journal,
2(Special Issue), 83-98.

A number of Micro level studies were done before embarking on this research.
Publications from the studies are as follows:

Journal Publications

1. Subramaniam,G., Iyer, M., G., & Maniam,B. (2010). Do Malaysian women
who opt out of the labour market want to return? - A micro level analysis.
International Journal of Business Research, 10 (1), 106-113.

2. Subramaniam,G., & .Selvaratnam, D.P. (2010). Family friendly policies in
Malaysia: Where are we? Journal of International Business Research. 9(1),
43-55

3. Subramaniam,G., Saadiah Mohamad, & Selvaratnam, D. P. (2010). why do
some women leave the labour force - A micro perspective from Malaysia.
Economic Bulletin, 11, 1-17.

4. Subramaniam,G., Iyer, M. G., Saadiah Mohamed & Norlin Nor (2010).
Children and Women’s Decision Not To Work –A Study In Klang Valley.
Malaysian Journal of Consumer & Family Economics. 13. 18 -27.

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DEDICATION

This dissertation is dedicated to three people who had a significant impact on my life.

My dad, Subramaniam,
who allowed me to chase my dream and stood next
to me until the dream came true, is my continuous
source of inspiration and a constant source of silent
support.

My mom, Saraswathy,
who left me suddenly on 13 February 2005, in her
sleep. One of her dreams was to see me as a
“Doctor”. She was a remarkable woman who taught
me all aspects of life especially about patience and
unconditional love.

My sweetheart, Prabha,
who also left me all of a sudden without even
saying good-bye on 17 June 1996. One day before
leaving for the astral world, he spoke in length
about his desire to see me pursue my PhD.

I am so grateful to all of them who had so much faith and
believed in my capability to be a “Doctor” one day.

Here I am

************
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Almighty
God for all His guidance and blessings to permit me to further my studies in New
Zealand and for being with me throughout the challenging PhD journey. The
completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the support of a
number of people whom I would like to acknowledge and to whom I would like to
extend warm thanks and gratitude.
I am particularly grateful to my PhD supervisors at Victoria University of
Wellington and Auckland Institute of Studies, St. Helens, who have provided
invaluable support and guidance throughout the research process. Thanks to my
primary supervisor, Professor John Overton for his substantial input and critical
suggestions which helped me to complete my thesis. His directional and constructive
feedbacks have stretched me further than I thought, and even more importantly, have
inspired my passion for development studies.
I would also like to thank my secondary supervisor, Ms Prue Hyman, a
feminist economist, for all her useful comments and guidance that enhanced the
quality of this thesis from the gender aspect. My heartiest gratefulness goes to my
third supervisor, Dr Ershad Ali, for his invaluable input and for being a constant
source of motivation throughout my challenging journey. He and his wife, Zulekha
showered me with true hospitality, accommodating me and taking care of me like a
daughter during all my trips to New Zealand.
I thank Professor Normala Amir Ishak, the Dean of the Faculty of Business
Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, for her constant support and a big thank
you to Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia for granting me the study
leave to complete my studies.
I also acknowledge the patience, cooperation and support of all the lovely
women who agreed to be my participants and interviewees. A note of appreciation
also goes to the Liaison Officers and the Human Resource personnel of the fourteen
organisations.

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My appreciation also extends to several friends and colleagues who have
helped me in the final stages of my PhD journey. A big note of thanks to Dr Dalice
Sim, Victoria University of Wellington for going through my data analysis. Also
thanks to Mr. Durairaju, Department of Statistics, Malaysia for his ready assistance
in providing secondary data. I would also like to say a big thank you to my dear
friends at Victoria University of Wellington, Mani Nambayah, Sandra Gogliani and
Suzanne Weaver from SGEES, and Sivakumar Dorairaj, from ECS, who facilitated
my thesis submission to the Faculty.
Finally, I would like to acknowledge my greatest appreciation and gratitude
to my family who have made a far greater contribution then they probably realise. In
particular, a big thanks to my father who is ninety-five years old but is very well
aware of my late nights and the hard work I had to put in to complete my thesis. A
very Big Thank You to my younger sister, Latha and brother-in-law Pathman for
accommodating me and taking care of my needs in Wellington which facilitated my
studies in Victoria University of Wellington. Many thanks to my niece, Shobha for
her unwavering support and understanding throughout my journey, not to mention
her editing work; and to my brother Prasad, for his constant encouragement. And
thank you to all my other family members, namely my sisters, brothers, sisters-in-law
and brothers-in-law for their patience and the motivation given to me to ensure that I
persevere and keep moving forward.

Thank you all.

***********************************************

Financial assistance from Victoria University’s PhD Thesis Submission Scholarship
is also gratefully acknowledged. Two Victoria University Faculty of Science grants
funded purchase of data and presentation of findings at international conferences in
Canberra and Auckland.

Geetha Subramaniam
Victoria University of Wellington
2011

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT i
PUBLICATIONS AND PRESENTATIONS ii
DEDICATION iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v
TABLE OF CONTENTS vii
LIST OF TABLES xi
LIST OF FIGURES xii
LIST OF APPENDICES xiii
ABBREVIATIONS xiv

1.0 INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW 1

1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Background development and women in the labour 4
market
1.2.1 Development And Women In The Malaysian labour 3
Market
1.2.2 Why Flexible Working Arrangements 8
1.3 Problem Statement 10
1.4 Objectives Of Study 12
1.4..1 Main objective 12
1.4.2 Specific objectives 13
1.5 Research questions 14
1.6 Research methods 14
1.7 Significance Of Study 14
1.8 Structure Of Thesis 15

2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 17

2.1 Introduction 17
2.2 Development concepts and theories – an overview 17
2.2.1 Mainstream development 17
2.2.2 Dependency theory 21
2.2.3 Neoliberalism and globalization 21
2.2.4 Alternative Development 24
2.3 A survey of theoretical debates on gender and development 27
models
2.3.1 Women in Development (WID) 27
2.3.2 Women and Development (WAD) 29
2.3.3 Gender and Development (WID)30 30
2.4 Women And labour market 32
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2.5 Flexible working arrangements, women and work 36
2.5.1 Flexible working arrangements 36
2.5.2 Benefits of FWA 15
2.5.3 FWA and women’s well-being 42
2.6 Some global examples of FWA and how they work for 43
Women.
2.7 Development theories, women and FWA – how they are 44
Related?
2.8 Summary 45

3.0 OVERVIEW OF INDUSTRIALIZATION IN THE LABOUR 47
MARKET IN MALAYSIA

3.1 Introduction 47
3.2 Industrialisation and Development in Malaysia – A 48
Historical Overview of the Colonial Policy
3.2.1 From colonialism to the new international 50
division of labour
3.2.2 Post colonial policy 53
3.2.3 The economic transition (1970 -2000) 55
3.2.4 Post NEP and labour industrialisation 60
(2000 -2010)
3.3 Women’s position in Malaysia 61
3.4 Women and work in Malaysia – patterns and trends from 65
the 1970s
3.5 Women and work –the regulatory framework 76
3.6 Flexible Working Arrangements in Malaysia 80
3.8 Other related policies and initiatives 83
3.9 Conclusion 87

4.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY & METHODS 89

4.1 Introduction 89
4.2 Epistemological approach to the research 89
4.2.2 The positivist approach 90
4.2.2 The phenomenological approach 91
4.2.3 The feminist Lens 92
4.3 The objectives of study 93
4.4 Research methods 94
4.5 Definitions of variables 96
4.6 Sampling design 98
4.6.1 Sampling technique 98
4.6.2 Scope 101
4.6.3 Sample size 101
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4.7 Quantitative Method 102
4.7.1 Instrument 102
4.7.2 Questionnaire Administration 103
4.7.3 Statistical Analysis 103
4.7.4 Hypothesis Testing 104
4.8 Qualitative Method 105
4.8.1 Introduction 105
4.8.2 Instrument 105
4.8.3 Participants 106
4.8.4 Method of Analysis 107
4.8.5 Procedure 107
4.9 Ethical Considerations 108
4.10 Summary 110

5.0 FLEXIBLE WORKING ARRANGEMENTS AND FEMALE 111
LABOUR FORCE – A QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS

5.1 Introduction 111
5.2 Characteristics of respondents 111
5.3 The Uptake of FWA by female employees in Malaysia 125
5.3.1 L ogistic Regression Theory 126
5.3.2 Logistic Regression Model 127
5.3.3 Results for Regression Analysis 128
5.3.4 Perceived Advantages and Disadvantages to 135
Respondents
5.4 Do working arrangements affect women’s desire to work? 137
5.5 Summary 139

6.0 THE IMPACT OF FLEXIBLE WORKING ARRANGEMENT
ON WOMEN’S WELL-BEING – A QUALITATIVE
ANALYSIS

6.1 Introduction 141
6.2 Method 141
6.3 Quantitative analysis – MANOVA Analysis 142
6.4 Qualitative analysis - Content Analysis 144
6.4.1 Theme One - Work-life Balance 148
6.4.1.1 Managing time at home 148
6.4.1.2 Managing Family Time 151
6.4.1.3 Balancing the Demand of Work and Household 153
Chores
6.4.1.4 Managing work and caring responsibilities 158
6.4.1.5 Managing commuting to the work place 163
6.4.2 Theme Two – Work, Lifestyles and Well-being 167
6.4.3 Theme Three – Household, Economic and Social 174
Empowerment
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