Tag: Gender economics

Educated Emirati fathers want more for their daughters

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First published in:

Pennington, R. (2017, April 23). . The National. https://www.thenational.ae/uae/educated-emirati-fathers-want-more-for-their-daughters-uae-study-shows-1.82837

The more educated a father is, the more likely he is to encourage his daughter to take up a high-powered career, a study suggests

Researchers from United Arab Emirates University are studying the influence of parents in their children’s careers. And an Emirati child with parents in the private sector is much more likely to hold similar aspirations, it says. Before Mariam Al Zaabi had finished university, her father urged her to become a self-sufficient, professional woman. “He wanted me to be as strong as the men,” said Ms Al Zaabi. “So he said, ‘you need to work and you need to go and earn your degree’.” Her experience is in line with the two main findings of the study into the influence of parents in their children’s careers, by researchers at UAE University.

Academics polled 335 female Emirati students to see what influenced their career intentions. Dr Emilie Rutledge, associate professor at the university’s College of Business and Economics, hoped the two findings could help with Emiratisation policy. “Encouraging more males to undertake tertiary education and continuing with the policy of subsidising the employment costs of nationals will pay longer-term dividends in terms of female labour force participation,” Dr Rutledge said. An unexpected finding was the lack of influence mothers had over children’s career choice. “Mothers, irrespective of their educational attainment level, had no significant influence in the career decision making process of their daughters,” said Dr Rutledge.

The survey also asked students whether they wanted to work in the public or private sectors, to which 78.5 per cent responded public. “Furthermore, 29.6 per cent strongly agreed with the statement that they would ‘wait’ for a government job, as opposed to taking a private sector job in the interim,” the study found. The respondents also said that if the prospective job were “interesting,” the employer offered maternity leave and employed women role models, it would increase women’s likelihood of entering the workforce, the study found. “The job being interesting was ranked as the most important and this was subsequently found to significantly increase the likelihood of labour market entry,” the researchers wrote. While salary was also identified as a factor, “it did not turn out to have a significant relationship” with choice of career.

Comfy government jobs

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First published in:

Al Nowais, S. (2017, March 7). Sheikh Abdullah tells UAE youth to think beyond ‘comfortable’ jobs. The National. https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/government/sheikh-abdullah-tells-uae-youth-to-think-beyond-comfortable-jobs-1.41511

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed has told Emirati youth to think beyond expectations of “comfortable” government jobs and prepare to compete with the rest of the world.

“If you want to participate in shaping the future then you need to stop thinking of a government job,” the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said.

“No other country in the region supports youth-led projects like the UAE. It is one the easiest countries to set up a run a business, so start your own business and corporations.”

He spoke on Tuesday at the Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis for Future Generations in Abu Dhabi, which brought together more than 3,000 Emirati university students.

While many see globalisation as one of the biggest challenges, Sheikh Abdullah said he sees it as an opportunity.

“It’s an opportunity to compete. You are no longer competing amongst yourselves but with the greatest minds around the world,” he said.

He encouraged youth to develop their skills and gain more to keep pace with the latest technological and global advances.

Seventy-five per cent of jobs available today will be obsolete by the time children born this year join the workforce, he said.

“I invite you to seize the opportunity and the opportunities available around you,” he said. “Invest your precious time in your education so you can be ready for your working life.”

Youth must be more “serious and dedicated”, he said, with more ambitions and hope, and a desire to develop and give more to their country.

There are no more “comfortable” jobs in the UAE, he said, because the Government is looking towards the future, envisioning projects in renewable energy and a colony on Mars.

Fields such as renewable and nuclear energy are ones that he never imagined studying in university, he said.

“Now the opportunities of development in these fields are more than ever. We can now take part and participate in international development,” said Sheikh Abdullah.

“Brothers and sisters, those made the biggest and greatest changes in the world and in our lives are not those who learned more, but those who were dedicated.”

The Minister of State for Youth and the Ministers of Higher Education, Climate Change and Environment, also spoke at the start of the two-day summit.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited the exhibition after its launch. He will deliver an address on Wednesday.

Sheikh Mohammed said Emirati youth are capable of presenting “innovative initiatives and creative solutions to tackle challenges”.

“We encourage and provide them what it takes to excel in education and scientific research while adopting their ideas and innovations in different fields,” he said.

Shamma Al Mazrouei, Minister of State for Youth, said Sheikh Abdullah’s speech was inspiring, particularly when he said there were no comfortable jobs in the government of the UAE. The summit was aimed at inspiring youth and supporting them in building the future.

Dr Ahmad Belhoul, Minister of State for Higher Education, said the majlis is way to inspire students and provides them an opportunity to choose their careers. One of the messages from the summit is the importance of investment in one’s self.

“A university degree alone is not enough to face the changes of the job market,” he said.

Living in a technological age means the skills a student acquires today might not be required by the job market once he or shee graduates, he said, so it is important to invest in one’s self and constantly keep abreast of changes.

Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, hosted a session during which he highlighted the pivotal role that UAE youth play in combating climate change and advancing the protection of natural resources.

He said climate change will affect all inhabitants of the Earth and will lead communities to change their lifestyles.

“Climate change affects the fundamentals of our daily lives, such as the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, the work we do and the house we live in,” he said.

“Innovation and creativity are the fundamental pillars of sustainable and nontraditional solutions adopted by the UAE in its journey towards sustainability and decreasing the effects of climate change and adapting to it.”

Emirati women and the labour market

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Dr Emilie Rutledge, associate professor of Economics at UAE University, at the lecture on Parental Influence on Female Vocational in the Arabian Gulf at Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government.

Parents play critical role in Emirati women’s career choices, UAE study shows

The research team was led by Dr Emilie Rutledge, associate professor of economics at UAE University, who presented their findings to academics at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) on Tuesday.

“Parental influence has a significant role on a given female’s likelihood of seeking to enter the labour market post-graduation,” she said. “Parental support reduces what women perceive as cultural barriers to employment.”

Sixty-eight per cent of the women said their parents influenced their decisions about careers, and 80 per cent said they preferred to work in the public sector. Forty-six per cent said they felt it was the Government’s responsibility to find them work in the public sector. Working in education, the civil service and police were deemed the most culturally “acceptable” careers for an Emirati woman, although areas such as advertising, marketing and pharmaceuticals were deemed more “attractive”.

“However, if parents are engaged in the vocational decision-making process, the female is more likely to consider exploring opportunities in the private sector,” Dr Rutledge said.

For Emiratisation to be successful, there must be more emphasis on these other fields rather than banking, human resources and finance, which the women did not consider interesting or attractive, Dr Rutledge said.

“Being in a gender-segregated environment was not as important to the girls as the salary or the job being interesting was, even if society or parents as a whole object to this,” she said.

Dr Rutledge cited holiday time and maternity leave as important, both of which were more attractive in the public than private sectors.

Ensuring the women return to the workplace through flexible working times and better maternity benefits was vital.

“A lot of females leave the workplace when they have a family because of the poor provisions, so they simply don’t go back and in turn, they lose their skills,” she said.

A father’s level of education was key in determining how his daughters would be guided. Fathers with degrees are more likely to support and encourage women to seek employment.

“Private-sector career paths are more attractive if the parent already works in the private sector,” Dr Rutledge said.

“This is of importance as there is merit to incentivising more Emirati males into higher education for the long-term participation of Emirati women in the labour market.”

Women graduate at a 3 to 1 ratio from UAE federal universities. Dr Maryam Salem Al Marashad has been a long-standing academic at UAE University since she graduated with the first batch of students in 1977. She left her post as dean of students two years ago but is still active in academia. She said a husband’s influence could not be underestimated.

“We see many girls at UAEU get married in their third year, so by the time they are going to the labour market, it is not only the family but their husband – she is stuck with an answer from her husband that she can or cannot work here or there.”

Geography will also sway a woman’s choices, she said. “In Fujairah when I go to my bank, the whole first row is full of Emirati women who are supporting their families and are interested to work,” she said. “In Abu Dhabi or Dubai where there are many more opportunities, they can afford to be more picky.”

MBRSG’s head of gender and public policy, Ghalia Gargani, said more research was needed for the long-term participation of Emirati women in the job market. Only 9 per cent of the labour force is Emirati, a fifth of them women. “We need to think of ways to have policies for both men and women to balance their work and life and the responsibilities that come with their culture here,” she said. “It’s very relevant to research we’re doing here on the family unit.”

Future of Emirati women often determined by parents

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First published in:

Swan, M. (2014, January 29). Future of Emirati women often determined by parents. The National. https://www.thenational.ae/uae/education/future-of-emirati-women-often-determined-by-parents-1.687617

Parental attitudes can reduce the cultural barriers that keep Emirati women from entering the workplace.

A study polled 335 female citizens between the ages of 15 and 24 from across the country. The research team was led by Dr Emilie Rutledge, associate professor of economics at UAE University, who presented their findings to academics at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) on Tuesday.

“Parental influence has a significant role on a given female’s likelihood of seeking to enter the labour market post-graduation,” she said. “Parental support reduces what women perceive as cultural barriers to employment.”

Sixty-eight per cent of the women said their parents influenced their decisions about careers, and 80 per cent said they preferred to work in the public sector.

Forty-six per cent said they felt it was the Government’s responsibility to find them work in the public sector.

Working in education, the civil service and police were deemed the most culturally “acceptable” careers for an Emirati woman, although areas such as advertising, marketing and pharmaceuticals were deemed more “attractive”.

“However, if parents are engaged in the vocational decision-making process, the female is more likely to consider exploring opportunities in the private sector,” Dr Rutledge said.

For Emiratisation to be successful, there must be more emphasis on these other fields rather than banking, human resources and finance, which the women did not consider interesting or attractive, Dr Rutledge said.

“Being in a gender-segregated environment was not as important to the girls as the salary or the job being interesting was, even if society or parents as a whole object to this,” she said.

Dr Rutledge cited holiday time and maternity leave as important, both of which were more attractive in the public than private sectors.

Ensuring the women return to the workplace through flexible working times and better maternity benefits was vital.

“A lot of females leave the workplace when they have a family because of the poor provisions, so they simply don’t go back and in turn, they lose their skills,” she said.

A father’s level of education was key in determining how his daughters would be guided. Fathers with degrees are more likely to support and encourage women to seek employment.

“Private-sector career paths are more attractive if the parent already works in the private sector,” Dr Rutledge said.

“This is of importance as there is merit to incentivising more Emirati males into higher education for the long-term participation of Emirati women in the labour market.”

Women graduate at a 3 to 1 ratio from UAE federal universities.

Dr Maryam Salem Al Marashad has been a long-standing academic at UAE University since she graduated with the first batch of students in 1977.

She left her post as dean of students two years ago but is still active in academia. She said a husband’s influence could not be underestimated.

“We see many girls at UAEU get married in their third year, so by the time they are going to the labour market, it is not only the family but their husband – she is stuck with an answer from her husband that she can or cannot work here or there.”

Geography will also sway a woman’s choices, she said.

“In Fujairah when I go to my bank, the whole first row is full of Emirati women who are supporting their families and are interested to work,” she said. “In Abu Dhabi or Dubai where there are many more opportunities, they can afford to be more picky.”

MBRSG’s head of gender and public policy, Ghalia Gargani, said more research was needed for the long-term participation of Emirati women in the job market.

Only 9 per cent of the labour force is Emirati, a fifth of them women.

“We need to think of ways to have policies for both men and women to balance their work and life and the responsibilities that come with their culture here,” she said. “It’s very relevant to research we’re doing here on the family unit.”