Flexible Working Arrangements in Malaysia and the Participation of Women in the Labour Force

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 wellbeing 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