Various authors recognize that female employment is one of the most important factors determining the status of women. Not only is it regarded as a significant component of the family income in various countries (Safilios-Rothschild, 1982), but economic activity is widely advocated as the primary determinant in enhancing women’s status through attaining social and economic independence, autonomy in decision-making, and other beliefs and attitudes (Boserup, 1970; Mies, 1980; Schultz, 1982). Female economic activity is also considered to play an important role in population control as seen in several developed countries. The relationship, however, has not always been consistent and clear in various developing countries (Stycos and Weller, 1967). In Pakistan, the strong forces of patriarchy and the observance of purdah have led to a low level of female labour force participation and it is this low level of female economic activity which is professed to accord a higher social status to females in strict terms of cultural definition.
In contradiction to the prevailing custom, various national statistics on labour force participation, both previous and recent, show that women have long been engaged in economic activities. The participation rates for women in productive work, though slight when compared to those of men, have been increasing over the years. Figures obtained from the census reports and from the Housing, Economic and Demographic Survey, 1973, show that the w om en’s work participation rate increased from 3 per cent in 1951 to 9 per cent in 1961 and remained somewhat constant between 1961 and 1973. In 1981, the
percentage of working women was reported to have declined to 3 per cent (Home Affairs Division, 1964; Census Organization, n.d.; Census Organization, 1984). The decrease as given by the 1981 census is not supported by data from other sources and is largely attributed to the under-reporting of female workers by the household males who hold negative views towards female work. This is highly probable as during the 11-year rule of General Ziaul Haq, from 1977 to 1988, stringent measures were adopted to convert Pakistan into a true Islamic state and women were marginalized in every way. The figures arc debatable2 on the basis of many other surveys (Abbasi, 1980:1-3; Hafeez, 1982, 1984a; Nazeer and Aljalaly, 1983:1 -4; Women’s Division, 1984:4-10) which show that a considerable number of females, especially the poor and specifically those in the villages, are involved in economic activities in the unorganized sector, and are therefore not included in the national statistics. Many of these women are also involved in jobs like house-minding, sweeping, laundering, agriculture, tailoring or vending at home which require neither education nor any professional skills.
Empirical evidence provided for this study shows that 83 per cent of the respondents did not work either at home or away from home for economic gain. Of those who were engaged in some kind of employment, 3 per cent worked at home which also included housekeeping. Of the other 14 per cent, most were private or government employees. However, there were a few other women who did some kind of work from home but did not consider it work as it was not done regularly. One respondent married into a family which required her to wear a burqa— a black garment which covers the entire body and has a veil to cover the face— did tailoring at home for some of the women within the area but did not report it as work. The interview was conducted in the presence of her husband and the mother- in-law (who was permitted not to wear a burqa), and when the question of work arose it was the husband who said that in his family women did not work and that his wile did a bit of tailoring once in a while to keep herself busy.
The negative attitude of the society in general and men in particular towards women working outside the home is one of the outstanding reasons for the low rate of female participation in the labour force. It is not the work which stigmatizes the women but the freedom of movement needed to venture outside the house. Traditionally, participation in public life would mean working and interacting with na-mehrum (strange men) which is strictly against the principles of purdah and the integrity and reputation of the family. This has resulted in specifying certain jobs as stated by Jelin (1982:253) which are considered ‘appropriate’ or ‘inappropriate’ for women. Women will be allowed to take up only those jobs which are close to their own households and are preferably done during the day time. Most of them will be allowed to perform tasks which are considered as extensions of their domestic work or those which cater exclusively for females such as house-keeping.
As stated above, the basic purpose of limiting the working capacity of women is to minimize their interaction with men. This applies to women working in both the formal and informal sectors. The few women employed in the formal sector are mostly in occupations like teaching, social work or medicine which are considered more respectable for women because they do not conflict with traditional norms of femininity. Except at the university
There is ambiguity in the definition of employment, such as confusion over minimum age at which employment rates should be calculated, the type of activities (agricultural, work in the unoganized sector, unpaid family help, work in the house) which should be included when calculating employment rates, and the reference period upon which to base these rates. As a result the tools for measuring employment are not very satisfactory. If diese tools are not adequate for men, diey are even less so for women.
level or some private institutions, most of the women teachers are employed in institutions exclusively for females. Likewise, most women in the medical professions, such as doctors, specialize in gynaecology or child and maternal-care related fields. But it is interesting to note the contradiction of attitudes under the influence of the same cultural values: being a doctor is considered to have prestige whereas the nursing profession is still looked down upon. The explanation given is that nursing, though not in conflict with feminine roles, involves contact with male patients and doctors, and irregular hours of work. It seems like a class-based contradiction rather than professional as to become a doctor entails much more expense, not to mention that almost all medical colleges in Pakistan are co-educational and that doctors are equally involved with male patients and are required to work on night shifts at least while doing the internship. Prejudices against various types of work therefore reflect more the point of view of men and are subject to change for their own convenience and benefit. With the gradual increase in education and chances of high income associated with certain jobs, there is, however, a growing but slow and uneven change in the traditional attitudes toward women’s aptitudes and capacities.
Although attitudes towards female employment are more of a cultural issue, evidence from this study as well as national surveys shows that economic activity outside the home is more restricted for Muslim than for non-Muslim women. As already mentioned, 30 per cent of the respondents included in this study were Christians. Stratification of female work status by religion shows that of the 83 per cent of women who were not engaged in any gainful employment, 78 per cent were Muslim compared to 22 per cent Christian. Of the 14 per cent of women who worked outside the home, 80 per cent were Christians and the remaining 20 per cent along with the 3 per cent of women who worked from home were Muslims. Of the Muslim women who worked outside the home, one was a doctor, four were teachers, three were working as housekeepers nearby and two worked as dais. Of the 80 per cent of Christians working outside the home, many either worked for the municipality as cleaners or were nurses or midwives in the nearby clinics or hospitals. Similar results were obtained by Helbock (1975:40) whose analysis of the 1961 census data shows that non-Muslim women aged ten and over had labour force participation rates twice as high as Muslim women.
Most Christian females are employed in the formal sector as doctors, teachers, nurses, midwives or cleaners. According to the statistics available for 1989 (Statistics Division, 1990:334; 1991:209) there were 10,275 registered female medical practitioners, 19,581 registered nurses, 4,461 registered lady health visitors and 12,924 midwives in Pakistan. Clearly the principles of purdah and sex-segregation applies to almost all Pakistanis, but its observance seems slightly relaxed for the Christian families. General observation and detailed discussions with these women revealed that within the social and cultural norms and attitudes, Christian females were relatively free to move around. This gave them better knowledge of the outside world and interaction with people from different walks of life. Most of these Christian families, men, women and children, go to church regularly where they interact with other families and exchange ideas and information which may lead to greater awareness and better health attitudes and practices. With a few exceptions, hospitals, churches and schools run formerly by European missionaries were nationalized in the 1970s and were places where many Christian families interacted with people with modern knowledge and ideas. Such interaction is bound to change attitudes and practices as is not the case with women who spend most of their time at home and experience the outside world only when necessary. In-depth interviews and open discussions with Christian women also indicated that in the event of a sickness, especially that of a child, many preferred to go to the nearby Holy Family hospital rather than to any other clinic. Most of
them also had a Christian relative or a friend who was affiliated with the medical profession. Even those who worked in the hospital as midwives or cleaners took full advantage of being affiliated with the hospital, either by getting advice from a medical professional or by getting concessions and due consideration as co-workers.
Although working women are breaking out of the traditional confinement in the household, they have a double burden as they still have to do all the household work. Men rarely do household work as it is traditionally inappropriate. A rare attempt by a man to help in the house is criticized by neighbours and relatives and his wife is blamed for having taken up a job. Many women who were working for the municipality came home during the working day to cook and to feed the children. Others took advantage of living in an extended family where the mother-in-law or other relatives including the older girls took care of the younger siblings in the absence of the mother. In one household, the couple had made arrangements in such a way that the husband worked night shifts and took care of the children for part of the day while the mother was away at work. The respondent also had her younger sister living with her who did most of the household work along with looking after the children. Although men may take care of children, it is rare to see them doing other household work which is the responsibility of the woman even if she works to financially support the household. The situation remains unchanged even when the husband is temporarily out of work and may spend the entire day sitting at home. There has been no change in m en’s machismo; the man is the main authority of the household in whom rest all the major decision-making powers and total control of the household members. Thus, working women undergo greater stress than those who spend the day at home. This situation may contribute to the working woman’s ill-health or malnutrition; more in the case of the poor and the illiterate, especially when she is expected to produce a large number of children. These factors together can also affect the health of the child, specifically in its foetal stage.
Anker (1982:39) argued that
In societies of the developing countries, child-care during the late prenatal and early postnatal period is not completely determined by cultural norms, and ... the health of the child in this period is partly a function of the m other’s other roles in life.
He emphasized that such a conflict is particularly important in the case of working women, specifically for women in low-income households; women working away from home usually bottle-feed their children which is less hygienic and therefore reduces the child’s health and survival probabilities. Although this may be true it does not seem to apply in absolute terms to this study for the following reasons. Those working in government or private organizations are by law entitled to maternity leave which extends up to 12 weeks of which six weeks must precede the expected date of confinement. Women usually tend to extend their leave after delivery as a result of accumulated leave or leave without pay. Women who mostly work as housekeepers or on a casual or daily basis are likely to give up the job during or immediately after the confinement period or find a replacement for that duration.
The given reasons are also supported by the fact that breastfeeding is almost universal in Pakistan and breastfeeding duration is fairly long. On the contrary, and as will be seen in the succeeding chapters, more than the work status of the mother, it is her educational status and the extent of interaction with the outside world which enhance her ability to contribute to child health. Known examples which may be related to child morbidity and
mortality are the widespread cultural practices of home births and not feeding colostrum to the child right after birth, putting the child at great risk of unhygienic environment, infections and contaminated foods. Various national data and surveys do not give any evidence of high child morbidity or mortality rates due to the employment of the mothers and therefore there is no distinction between the child morbidity and mortality rates of working and non-working women. In fact Hafeez (1984b:6) found that employed women are more conscious about duties towards their home, husband and children and tend to spend more time in fulfilling these responsibilities than women who stay at home. The major findings of her study in all the large cities of Pakistan suggest that women’s employment does not have a negative effect on their families, rather the positive effects outweigh the negative ones even though unlike in developed countries, there is no child care provision at the state level, such as day-care centres, for all working women. All studies conducted in Pakistan also provide evidence of a strong correlation between the education of the mother, whether working or not, and higher child survival, which suggests that child rearing is more associated with other cultural practices operative in the society.