Date
:
Prepared by :
31st October 2003
Mothers for Mothers e-homemakers
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION I .......................................................................................................................................
5
INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 5
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
Background ............................................................................................................................
Research Objectives ............................................................................................................6
................ Mothers for Mothers/e-homemakers (M4M) - Testing Partner and Stakeholders
.......................................................................................................................... Methodology
..................................................................................................................... The Study Team
............................................................................................................................. Limitations
6
8
9
10
11
SECTION II .................................................................................................................................. 13
ISSUES OF INTEREST ............................................................................................................. 13
DEVELOPING THE APPROPRIATE TOOLS ...................................................................... 13
EVALUATION ............................................................................................................................. 13
1.0
2.0
3.0
Issues of interest ................................................................................................................13
.........................................................................................Developing the Appropriate Tools
...................................................................................Evaluation - Social Change Indicators
SECTION III ....................................................................................................................................
18
19
25
THE METHODOLOGIES .......................................................................................................... 25
A.
B.
C.
HOME VISITS – Interview VT ........................................................................................25
..............................................................................FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS (FGD)
SURVEY - LONG QUESTIONAIRE ..............................................................................34
SECTION IV................................................................................................................................. 39
FINDINGS .................................................................................................................................... 39
SECTION V .................................................................................................................................. 40
SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................. 40
SECTION VI................................................................................................................................. 41
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ..................................................................... 41
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
3
30
E x e c u t i ve S u m ma r y
T h e Ge n d er E va l u at i on M e t h o d ol o gy o r G E M i s a s t u d y t o e va l ua t e h o w IC T
a n d ge n d e r i ss u e s af f e c t t he l i ve s o f t el e wo r ke r s . T h e st u d y t o ok a b o u t s e ve n
( 7 ) mo n t h s t o c o mp l e t e . A s a t es t i n g p a r t n e r f o r A si a r e gi o n , M o t h er s f or
M o t he r s/ e -h o me ma ke r s ( M4 M) h a s a p p oi n t e d i n d ep e n de n t co n s u l t a nt s t o
w o r k c l o s e l y w i t h i t s me mb e r s t o c o n d u ct t h e st u d y. T h e o bj e c t i ve o f t h e
s t u d y i s t o a d dr e ss p e r t i ne n t i ss u es o n t h e u s a ge of IC T f r o m ge n d e r
p e r s pe ct i ve s i nc l ud i ng s o c i o -e c o n o mi c ma t t er s , ef f i ci e n c y a n d p r o d u ct i vi t y;
a n d he n c ef o r t h d et e r mi n e s c o n di t i o n s t h at e na b l e w o me n t o b e ef f i ci e nt
t e l e w o r ke r s .
T hi s r e p or t o ut l i n es t h e r at i on a l e a nd pr o c e s s i n vo l ve d i n deve l o p i n g t he
a p p r o pr i a t e me t h o d o l o gi e s a n d i n di c at or s , s e l e ct i o n o f t he S t ud y T e a m a n d
a l s o p a r t i c i pa n t s f or t h e va r i o us me t h o d o l ogi e s .
H a vi n g t a ki n g i n t o co n s i de r at i o n M 4M ’ s w i d e n et w o r k o f t el ew o r ke r s , t he
T ea m h a s ad a pt e d t h r ee ( 3 ) di f f e r e n t me t h o d o l o gi e s t o f ac i l i t a t e an d
a c c o m mo d a t e t h e c o nvo l u t i o n: ( i ) H o me V i s i t s ( i i ) F oc u s G r ou p D i s c u ss i on ,
a n d ( i i i ) S u r ve y – L o n g Q u e s t i o n na i r e . I n i t i al l y, t h e T e a m h a s i n t en d e d t o
i n cl u d e a f ou r t h me t h o d o l o gy u s i n g o n l i n e s u r ve y b u t c o u l d n ot i mp l e me n t i t
d u e t o l ac k o f f u nd i ng.
At this stage, the study is inconclusive as the sample size is too small
(for SPSS significance) to provide a clear distinction of teleworking
situation in Malaysia. Initial findings showed that major challenges
for a female teleworker could be her ability to separate family life
and work; and getting due recognition for her contributions as a
teleworker and a caregiver. Both these factors determine her time
management and output quality – in short, her commitment towards
w o r k . A f o l l o w - u p s t u d y c o m p r i s i n g e x p e r i e n c e s o f m o r e te l e w o r k e r s ,
i . e . , a b i g g er s a mp l e h a s t o b e c a rr i e d o u t t o s u b s t a n t i a t e t h e
findings of this study.
SECTION I
INTRODUCTION
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
4
1.0
Background
Mothers
for
Mothers/e-homemakers
(M4M)
has
partnered
with
The
Association for Progressive Communications Women’s Networking Support
Programmes (APCWNSP) to conduct Gender Evaluation Methodology or GEM
on teleworkers1 in Malaysia. In this study, M4M is the testing partner to
evaluate
social
transformation
through
cultural,
social
and
economic
contexts, which will enable women to benefit from the use of information and
communication technologies (ICT).
GEM examines how ICT intervention
affects changes at an individual, organisational, community and broader
social level from gender perspective.
This report gives a recount on the rationale and approach for selecting and
adapting the various gender analytical tools for evaluating ICT initiatives.
2.0
Research Objectives
In line with GEM focus to integrate gender analysis into evaluations of ICT
initiatives for social change, the main research objectives are aimed to
understand the unequal power relations between women and men in the
community and how ICT can create gender equality and bring positive social
changes and action.
The study hopes to understand the problems faced by working women and
men, the level of recognition for women’s triple roles in child caring, house
work and cash-earning, and if ICT can help to improve and change lifestyle in
order to enable women to cope with the multiple roles.
The study covers teleworkers working from home only. It does not include workers
whose jobs require them to travel often and hence, they telework due to the nature of
their job.
1
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
5
The research objectives are:
a)
Identify problems faced by teleworkers
The problems faced by teleworkers are categorized into workrelated/managing work at home, infrastructure-related and genderrelated.
b)
Identify the feasibility of teleworking and setting up of virtual office
within the Malaysian context
Feedback is obtained from experienced teleworkers in the M4M
network regarding the feasibility of working from home and having a
virtual office.
c)
Identify gender-sensitive issues for teleworking
Identify problems faced by men and women due to different role
expectations in the family and society.
d)
Promote teleworking to Malaysian Government
To promote teleworking and virtual work management, it is necessary
to ascertain teleworker’s profile to construct legislation, policy and
programmes.
Ultimately, GEM hopes to be able to facilitate and foster social changes and
henceforth create an environment that is conducive for women to work from
home.
3.0
Mothers
for
Mothers/e-homemakers
(M4M)
-
Testing Partner and Stakeholders
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
6
M4M is an initiative that functions as a network of mothers who are active in
activities that promote, support or facilitate women’s access and use of ICT.
It operates through an ICT environment with a core online organizing team.
Through its activities and programmes, it builds strategic alliances with
women’s networks to disseminate information, conduct conferences, training
and seminars. Hence, these activities have enabled M4M to identify two (2)
groups of teleworkers who are stakeholders of the study. Both these groups
are not only subjected to common practice on gender inequalities but they
are able to address problems and propose solutions effectively to facilitate
the use of ICT for social changes. The stakeholders are essentially the people
who use ICT to do their work from home. The stakeholders comprise internal,
i.e., the core organizing team, and external groups, i.e. the network
members. All of them have worked from home between one (1) and three
(3) years only.
i)
Internal stakeholders – M4M Virtual team (VT)
They are M4M’s full-time and/or regular contract staff that form
the core organizing team and they carry out telework from their
respective homes;
ii)
External stakeholders – Part-timers (PT) and Full-timers (FT)
PT may have full-time jobs elsewhere and moonlight from home
to earn some extra income. Or, they could also be teleworking
completely from home on part-time basis but on fixed contract
from one (1) company. Full-timers are usually business people,
entrepreneurs or freelancer (on assignment or project basis)
working for more than one (1) company.
In this study, the Team has referred both PT and FT working from home as
PT to distinguish them from VT.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
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Table 1: Working hours of teleworkers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Work 9am to 6pm for M4M
Has full-time office job outside of home
Work long hours
Paid every month
Paid when job done
4.0
VT
Yes
No
No
Yes
No
PT
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
FT
No
No
Yes & No
No
Yes
Methodology
Having taken into consideration the study objectives and stakeholders, M4M
has designed and adapted three (3) methodologies to gather information for
evaluation.
a)Home Visit (HV)
This methodology is confined to evaluation of VT through home
visits.
b)Focus Group Discussion (FGD)
This methodology is confined to in-depth discussion with PT.
c)Survey – Long Questionnaire (LQ)
This methodology involves carrying out survey by sending a set
of questionnaire form to VT and PT.
Further details on the various methodologies are provided in Section III of
this report.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
8
5.0
The Study Team
The Study Team (herein referred as the Team) comprising seven (7) women
who work from home, either as a member of M4M core organizing team or
independent consultants. Three of them are employed by M4M and the
remaining four (4) are independent consultants. All the members of the
Team have experienced conducting research studies on gender and ICT
issues.
Table 2: The Study Team
Name
1.Chong Sheau Ching
2.Yen Leong/
3.Amy Chan
4.Rosidah Mohamad
Role
Project Leader
Project
Coordinator/
Independent
Consultant
Data entry
5.Carol Cady
Independent
Consultant
6.Ramona Ali
Independent
Consultant
Independent
Consultant/
APCWNSP
7.Cheekay Cinco
6.0
Responsibilities
Person in-charge of this project
Planning & Coordinating
Researching on GEM material
Compile data into SPSS survey
analysis software
Recommending methodology
Preparing questionnaires
Analyse SPSS data
Analyse the findings and compile
into a report.
Moderator for FDG and HV
Limitations
Due to time constraint and budget, the study is confined to M4M members
and associates, and as such it has the following limitations:
a)
The sample size is only 62 and insufficient to reflect the overall
teleworking situation in the whole of Malaysia. Nevertheless, it bears
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
9
the significance of establishing the trend on the current usage of ICT
of teleworkers.
b)
The sample size is confined to selected states in Malaysia, which have
large M4M member base, e.g. Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Kedah, Negeri
Sembilan and Penang and as such, again, it may not be reflective of
the
overall
teleworking
situation
in
the
whole
of
Malaysia.
Nevertheless, it bears the significance of establishing the trend on the
current usage of ICT of teleworkers because the mentioned states
have higher level of Internet penetration2 than the rest of the states.
c)
Analysis on gender perspective may not bear much significance
because ratio sample size of male teleworker to female teleworker in
this study is too small, i.e. 1:8. Furthermore, with the unavailability of
statistical data on teleworkers in the national level, it is difficult to
confirm if this reflects the actual situation in Malaysia. Nevertheless,
for the purpose of this report, we have included the gender analysis
based on available data with us.
d)
Given the number of years (1-3 years) the respondents have
been teleworking, it is deemed that teleworking is still in its infancy. As
such the long and medium term effects in terms of gender relations
within the family will not be truly evident until further evaluation and
monitoring is carried out.
e)
The inability to preserve anonymity may be an issue preventing
more respondents from participating in the survey. It is necessary to
follow-up closely with potential respondents to ensure participation
and furthermore, there is also a need to proof the existence of
Internet penetration is used as yardstick to determine the level of ICT usage because
we have assumed that access to the Internet as the ultimate ICT tools.
2
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
10
stakeholders. Hence, anonymity is difficult to preserve in this
situation.
SECTION II
ISSUES OF INTEREST
DEVELOPING THE APPROPRIATE TOOLS
EVALUATION
1.0
Issues of interest
Teleworking is not entirely a new concept but the introduction of computers,
especially the Internet has brought remarkable changes to the scene as
services and products can now tap a much wider audience without the hassle
of incurring more travelling. Moreover, the manner of work being conducted
is much more flexible as time factor is no longer confined to “9 to 5”.
However, teleworking, being new to Malaysia, has raised several concerns,
especially since productivity and work quality are difficult to monitor.
Teleworking has also presented opportunities for women to cope with family
lives and career simultaneously. This study is intended to examine these
concerns.
1.1
Work-related - Managing work at home
1.1.1 Time
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
11
Depending on the type of teleworkers, the working
hours differ for each group of stakeholders.
i)
Fixed working hours - VT
As they are hired by M4M to work from 9 am to 6pm daily from
Monday to Friday, they get fixed salary each month without
strict control on work done.
ii)
Variable working hours - PT
PT are paid when work is completed. Their work schedule and
working hours usually vary from one individual to another,
implying that there could be other home and work influences on
their time management.
1.1.2
Work discipline
The study observes work discipline among teleworkers. VT work within
controlled environment, i.e. single employer and supposedly fixed
working hours. Unlike VT, PT are much more flexible with variable
working hours and set-up.
There are reservations on the exact working hours spent by VT based
on productivity and quality of work. Some of the indicators are jobs
left unattended, no follow-up to a particular task; and slow (and
sometimes no response at all) and therefore delayed e-mail response
time.
1.1.3
Supervision
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
12
As in any type of employment, there must be some form of
supervision on the staff performance. The study hopes to identify the
level of supervision required to maximise productivity and achieve
quality work for teleworkers in various organisation hierarchy. There
appears to be a need to monitor closely and supervise teleworkers to
ensure tasks are completed on time.
1.1.4 Social Image/Promotion.
The study hopes to identify whether job prospects and social image of
teleworkers affects the quality of work as opposed to work outside
home because teleworkers themselves seem to undermine the
seriousness of work and instead take work lightly.
1.1.5 The Office / Workstation Space
The study hopes to identify whether arrangement of office space or
workstation at home determines productivity and work quality as teleworkers
may be sitting in an uncomfortable area or incomplete office at home, e.g.
next to kitchen or in TV room etc.
1.2
Infrastructure-related issues and ICT
1.2.1
Initial Capital Outlay
The study hopes to identify the infrastructure costs to set up home
office.
1.2.2 Operational Cost
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
13
The operational cost for home office include Internet access, electric &
telephone bills are borne by teleworkers. From the study, it hopes to
gauge if teleworkers incur significant operational cost each month.
1.2.3Data Security
The study hopes to identify the proper backup facility as file and
documents are lost when computer crashes.
1.2.4Technical Knowledge
The study hopes to identify the level of teleworkers’ technical
knowledge, as there are instances when teleworkers do not seem to
know what to do when computer and Internet access are down.
Downtime affects productivity and can result in delays in output.
1.3
Gender-related issues
1.3.1
Roles in family
Women have dual or triple roles in a family. Can a woman cope with
triple roles simultaneously; as mother, as wife and as income earner?
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
14
1.3.2Role Expectation
Are women expected to serve the husband when he is home? Even
during working hours. Are women required to send & collect kids and
husband from school and from work?
1.3.3Other commitments
Do workers have heavy commitments in religion or community
services? For instance, taking care of elderly or disabled people?
1.3.4Priority
How does a worker prioritise his / her working at home? Can’t work
when children are awake?
1.3.5Spousal Support
Spousal support plays an important role. Can a teleworker work when
her spouse is at home?
2.0
Developing the Appropriate Tools
The development of appropriate tools were made over three phases: Phase I
involved choosing the appropriate methodologies and drawing up the
questionnaire forms, Phase 2 involved getting the stakeholders to participate
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
15
in the home visits, focus group discussion and survey; and Phase 3 involved
analysing the data and reporting.
With the readily available network of teleworkers from M4M network, the
Team considered various methodologies to capitalise on these teleworkers
associated with M4M for a thorough and well-represented spread of
experience and opinions.
The VT is essentially made up of members who work from home for M4M
since 2002. Their association with M4M is based on a relationship between
employer and employee. As one of the pre-requisite conditions for hiring is
setting up of proper home office, the Team adopted home visits as the most
appropriate tool for VT to evaluate the efficiency and productivity of
teleworkers in a more structured work environment than the PT.
The FGD comprised mainly M4M close associates working from home. They
were able to give explanations on the challenges they faced with their
families and social circles through their hands-on experience. This particular
method was selected because it entails detailed explanations.
The survey/LQ was developed to tap a larger group of teleworkers in the
quickest and most efficient way. Hence, the Team has drawn up a contact list
of
friends,
acquaintances
and
“friend-of-a
friend”
to
send
out
the
questionnaire form through e-mail or fax. This methodology has enabled the
Team to tap as many teleworkers as possible.
3.0
Evaluation - Social Change Indicators
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
16
For the purpose of this study, the Team has developed a set of social change
indicators to monitor and evaluate the progression of teleworkers to
determine its impact on the community and henceforth, determine its future
direction.
The social indicators evaluate values and goals as a result from teleworking.
Bearing that in mind, the indicators were developed based on the following
principles.
Indicators are linked to M4M’s objectives of promoting, supporting
and facilitating women’s access and use of ICT through an online
environment;
Indicators are developed to include all stakeholders;
Indicators are sex-disaggregated;
Both qualitative and quantitative indicators are used;
a)
Quantitative Indicators
Quantitative indicators are defined in quantity, for instance, the
number of women who have access to the Internet as compared to
men.
b)
Qualitative Indicators
Qualitative
indicators
are
defined
as
people’s
judgments
and
perceptions about a subject, such as the confidence those people have
in having computer skills for better employment opportunities or
having
access
to
the
internet
for
better
trading/marketing
opportunities.
By and large, interviews with VT and PT were conducted in an informal
manner whereby interviewees were given the opportunities to express
themselves freely within the scope of the topics and hence, qualitative
indicators were more apparent here. As for the survey/LQ, it has proceeded
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
17
within a structured and formal manner by way of filling up the questionnaire
form and hence, quantitative indicators were more apparent.
Below is an excerpt of the actual format used for the LQ. Question type
denotes the question format.
a)
Fact
Dichotomous (yes | no)
Multiple selection (A, B, C, D or Tick as many as apply)
b)
Details
Eg. Other: _______ (Please state)
c)
Open
Completely unstructured (open-ended)
d)
Likert
Likert Scale (Agree, disagree, strongly agree etc)
Table 3: Indicators
Indicators
PERSONAL
Question Type
Description
Fact
Age of person filling up the questionnaires
Fact
Male or Female
Fact
Race of teleworker
Fact
Religion of teleworker
Fact
Single, married, divorced, widow
Fact + Details Highest educational background
Age
Gender
Race
Religion
Marital Status
Educational
Background
Reason to work fromOpen
home
Behavioural
characteristics
Family background
Likert
Financial situation
Fact / Likert
Other commitments
Open
Open
Perception
ofLikert
teleworking
Image of teleworking Likert
Length of adjustmentFact
period to work from
Why he/she chooses to work from home?
E.g. Money, vision of women, stop gap
measure due to retrenchment
E.g. Caring, dignity, privacy
All family members staying in the same
house
Tight? Not enough to cover expenses? Must
help support family expenses?
E.g. Religion, volunteer work, social work,
family member’s visits
Understanding of what is required to telework
As serious job or for house wife to pass time
How long before a teleworker has adjusted to
working from home lifestyle
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
18
home
Length of time ofFact
working at home
Last job performance Open
Last job office workFact + Likert
culture
Work style
Likert
Self-discipline
Human contact
Likert
Likert
How long have you been working from home?
Eg. Any promotion, how many times of
increment.
Expectation
in
terms
of
deadline,
responsibility, dedication.
Independent, some amount of supervision,
close supervision
Degree of self-discipline
Work buddy; need company to work
WORK-RELATED
Question Type
Description
/Fact + Details Info required in getting job done. If info not
available, state from which party.
Deadlines are clear? (some person can’t work
without deadline)
Time management
Fact + Likert
Able to juggle between home & work?
Incentives
Fact + Likert
Happy with current salary? Opportunity for
promotion? Training?
Perception
of
jobLikert
Job pride, how important in getting job done?
responsibility
Work hours / workFact + Details Continuous of 9 hours uninterrupted or many
time-table
rushing, big gaps between chunks of work
time
Self set time-table
Work load
Fact
Can his/her job be converted to part time job
instead of full time job? To judge work load.
Work nature
Likert
Is it necessary to have continuous of
concentration like writing?
Distractions
Likert
Phone calls, visits, customers etc
Work environment
Likert
Problem
of
home
office,
eg.
Noise,
inadequate equipment etc
Work knowledge
Likert
Adequate knowledge to perform work,
trainings required?
Frequency in checkingFact
How frequent email is checked per day?
email per day
check
email
onFact
Check email on weekends?
weekends
workstation / virtualLikert
Where? What? Noisy? Complete? Etc
office
set-up
/
Adequate ICT setup to work efficiently
Adequate
ICT
Indicators
Question Type Description
ICT skills
Fact + Details Information Communication Technology skills
required to work from home (eg. Operate
computer, use software programs, use
Internet & email etc)
hardware failure
Fact + Details How often?
Able to solve?
Any backup
computer?
Indicators
Access
to
info
Schedule
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
19
Connectivity Problem
Fact + Details
Set-up cost
Running cost
Fact
Fact
Occupational Safety
Fact
Data security
Fact + Details
How often? Internet access down? Backup
plan?
Affordable?
Eg. Internet access, telephone & electricity
bills etc Expensive? Significant?
Eg. Proper posture when using computer, eye
strain, wrist pain etc
Sharing computer? Are info secured? Lost
files before?
GENDER
Question Type Description
forLikert
Time constraints for intra household work
Indicators
Time
required
household chores
Role in family
Support from spouse
Likert
Likert
Child care
Fact + Likert
Number of children
Fact
Age of children
Open
Interplay of religiousLikert
belief
Priority
Likert
In-charge of child care? House work? Cook?
Support given by family especially spouse to
work from home
Others or self? If others, are their services
reliable?
Number of children
To determine child care needed
Can a wife work when husband is at home?
Can work when children are awake?
SECTION III
THE METHODOLOGIES
A.
HOME VISITS – Interview VT
1.0
Background
This methodology involved visits to the home of VT. On 11 July, 14 July, 15
July and 19 July, APCWNSP’s representative, Cheekay Cinco made home
visits to the respective homes to observe the virtual home office environment
and interviewed VT.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
20
2.0
Objectives
There were seven (7) face-to-face interviews with VT and one (1) interview
via online Yahoo messenger. The objective is to identify the challenges faced
by teleworkers within a structured organisation.
a)
Identify problems faced by VT
Find out the problems VT faced to telework full-time and to get VT’s
suggestion on the possibility of teleworking full-time and ways to
improve it.
b)
Impact of teleworking on women’s lives
Find out the impact of teleworking on women’s lives. Does it change
gender relations at home?
To what extent, gender issues affect
teleworking and how teleworking through ICTs change women's life
and status.
c)
Observe Home Office setup & Home situation
To observe home office set-up and home situation and then access the
possibility of promoting teleworking full-time.
d)
Home Office Setup
Find out in terms of computer availability (sharing computer?),
location (stable internet access?) etc.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
21
e)
Home Situation
In terms of the working environment, whether it is noisy, full of
distraction or other the existence of other work barriers.
f)
Identify Personality of Teleworker
To determine the most common trait of teleworkers, e.g. whether teleworker
loves working on the computer, i.e. check email, surf etc during holiday too.
g)
Identify training and support needs of VT
Find out what are the training and support needed via observation and
interview.
Table 4: Home Visits
Issue/
Target
Method
Purpose
Output
Objective
Group
Identify needsVT
Interview VT and visitIdentify
General training and
to
remedy
home
offices
toproblems,
support needs
problems
observe set up andgeneral trainingProblems
and
home situation.
and
supportsolutions.
needs of VT
3.0
3.1
Problems faced by a company which offers teleworking
Work quality
Work quality is one of the most serious problems in teleworking.
Example 1:
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
22
A routine task of preparing a contract for a new consultant requires
four rounds of rectification although it was suppose to be prepared by
administration and checked by a superior.
Finally, the contract was
checked & amended by the Project Manager to end this timeconsuming and inefficient communication.
Example 2:
E-mail was not read properly. It took several days just to get a phone
number from a teleworker although instruction was given clearly from
the beginning. Internet connection problem is often used as reason
when teleworker was unable to reply email for several days. It usually
happened on Fridays and Mondays when teleworkers were unreachable
for 3 or 4 days in a row. It is difficult to verify the Internet connection
as teleworkers are scattered in different locations.
3.2
Characteristics of Non-Performers (from a company which offers
teleworking)
Below are examples of characteristics of non-performers, which the study
hopes to be able to verify.
a)
Some of the teleworkers seem to be extrovert and in need of human
contact. They have numerous parties at home during working hours,
call more meetings for subordinates to come to their houses for
discussions than others even though things can be settled on
email/phone.
b)
Some of the teleworkers seem to be strongly dominated by husbands’
will, For example, they are unable to say ‘no’ when husbands tell them
to steal work hours to settle personal/household affairs. Although their
husbands indicate strong support for their wives to telework during
interviews but when their wives actually telework and need to meet
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
23
deadlines, the husbands would refuse to give permissions to work as
they see it as a chance to control their wives’ movements.
c)
Some of the teleworkers seem to have low self-esteem or insecure
about their physical appearances or their ability to please their
husbands: e.g. A teleworker is over-weight and worried that her
husband will marry another because religion allows this leeway, and
hence, she tries every way to please her husband.
d)
Some of the teleworkers have background of having things easy, ie,
everything dropping on their laps without hard work. This is because of
their status, so having to work in a teleworking situation where output
is the indicator of work put in, presents a problem as they are used to
getting paid or rewarded without putting the required effort.
4.0
Participation
VT was participated by:
a)Azman Adnan
b)S.Puvaneswary
c)Rosidah Mohamad
d)Shanthini Jeyaratnam
e)Susan Greenall
f)Usha Krishnan
g)Yusri Abdul Rahman
Yen Leong
5.0
Invitation for feedback
As a measure of transparency, participants of HV were invited to comment
on “Report on the M4M interviews and Focus Group Discussions” prepared
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
24
by Cheekay Cinco.
Refer to Section IV on the revised findings from the
report.
Refer to Appendix 1 for the list of stakeholders.
B.
1.0
FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS (FGD)
Background information
Two sessions of FGD were held on 12 July 2003 and 22 July 2003.
2.0
Objectives
There were two (2) group discussions with PT.
The main objective is to
identify challenges faced by teleworkers in a free or/and contractual
employment market.
a)
Identify problems faced by PT
Find out the problems faced by PT to telework. Is it too tired to work
after a 9-hour office work? To gauge PT’s opinions on the viability of
teleworking and ways to improve the work option.
b)
Impact of telecommuting on women’s live
Find out the impact of teleworking (via ICT) has on women’s lives.
Does it change gender relations at home?
How does gender affects
teleworking and change women's lives and status.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
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c)
Discuss home office setup and home situation
To find out whether home offices set-up is a financial burden and
home situation presents a barrier to telework part-time, especially
married women when evenings are normally spent with husbands and
children.
i.Home Office Setup
In terms of computer availability (sharing computer?), location
(stable internet access?) etc
ii.Home Situation
In terms of noise, distraction and working condition.
d)
Identify personality of teleworker
Example of questions asked: if you were given a 1-month holiday, what
would you do? The purpose is to determine whether teleworker loves working
on the computer, i.e. check email, surf etc during holiday too.
3.0
Problems faced by a teleworking company
3.1
Schedule
Example:
For some PT, teleworking is their second job to earn extra income jobs are handled after office hour and weekends. Thus, time needed
to complete jobs is much longer than full-time staff. In addition, parttime jobs are delayed if PT have urgent projects in their offices that
require them to work overtime. For other PT, teleworking is their main
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
26
source of income and sometimes they have to juggle between several
assignments at one-go and therefore, they work a much longer hours.
In addition, some have to put up with household chores and tend to
their children too.
Another group of teleworkers work during their
leisure to earn some extra income and their daily routine revolves
round their families. Work is their last priority. Hence, the study hopes
to identify practical work scheduling to ensure work is completed on
time.
3.2
Continuity
Due to lack of commitment as most PT are paid as per assignment/project,
it interrupts the workflow when there is a requirement for continuity. A new
person may take longer time to retrace previous work done.
Table 5: Focus Group Discussion
Issue/ Objective Target
Method
Goals
Output
Group
Identify specificPT
Discuss
in-depthIdentify
List
of
specific
additional
questions.
additional issuesadditional problems
problems faced
specific to partnot
covered
by
by PT teleworkers
timers
questionnaire
3.0Participation
3.1
FGD session 1 held on 12 July 2003
The first session was held on 12 July 2003. A total of twenty-one (21) people
were contacted to invite them to participate in the FDG. Six (6) were unable
to attend due to various reasons including having other prior arrangement,
whereas another five could not be contacted. The remaining one (1) does not
work from home at all.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
27
Although initially, nine (9) participants agreed to attend but subsequently,
four (4) backed out just before the session proceeded and the session
commenced with five (5) participants. The four (4) that backed out gave
various reasons as given below:
1.Son was sick and she has to tend to her child;
2.No one to look after children during the weekend as mother backed out
last minute;
3.Had to visit a sick relative in Tanjung Malim;
Had to drive her children back home.
3.2
FGD session 2 held on 22 July 2003
The second session was held on 22 July 2003. A total of nineteen (19) people
were contacted to invite them to participate in the FGD.
There were six (6) participants for this session. Initially, seven (7)
participants agreed to attend but one (1) backed out just before the session
proceeded; reason given was because it was flooded in the neighbourhood.
Refer to Appendix 2 for the list of stakeholders.
4.0.
Invitation for feedback
As a measure of transparency, participants of FGD were invited to comment
on “Report on the M4M interviews and Focus Group Discussions” prepared
by Cheekay Cinco.
Refer to Section IV on the revised findings from the
report
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
28
C.
SURVEY - LONG QUESTIONAIRE
1.0
Background
The survey through filling up of questionnaire form was used to help the
Team to understand the issues faced by people working from home.
A total of 141 potential respondents were contacted for the survey through
telephone calls, e-mails or faxes between 8 July 2003 and 1 September
2003. The potential respondents comprising people who work from home
either having their own registered business or freelancer, part-timers and
those employed by M4M.
For analysis purposes, responses from VT and PT were segregated into two
sets of responses respectively.
2.0
Questionnaire form
The questionnaire form (Refer to Appendix 3) comprises a total of 83
questions. It comprises several formats including Likert scale, open-ended
and factual (dichotomy/multiple-choice).
Forty-two questions or 50%
required the respondents to use the Likert scle, thirty-seven or 45% are
factual questions and the remaining 4 or 5% are open-ended questions.
3.0
Mode of execution
From the M4M network, a contact list of potential respondents was drawn up
together with their e-mail address and contact numbers. E-mails were sent to
potential respondents. Where e-mail addresses were unavailable, telephone
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
29
calls were made. There were two cases of respondents requested for
documents to be faxed to them because they are either unable to retrieve
the documents due to different software or having problem with their dial-up.
To determine the suitability of the PT to participate in the survey, a random
screening on the current job status of potential respondents was made.
Subsequently, if potential respondents met the survey requirements, he/she
was invited to fill up the questionnaire form.
4.0
Follow-up action
The first set of e-mail sent to potential respondents introduced the purpose
of the survey. This is then follow-up with telephone calls and when there was
no reply within the next seven (7) days, reminders were sent. Some
respondents were sent up to four (4) reminders to respond to the
questionnaire form. On average, each respondent was reminded at least
twice through e-mail and also at least once through telephone calls if contact
numbers were available.
5.0
No response
All the members of VT responded to the questionnaire.
Sixty (60) potential PT respondents did not response to the questionnaire.
Among the possible reasons could be they deliberately do not want to
participate in the survey, cannot be contacted as both e-mail address and
telephone numbers have changed.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
30
Of the total 133 potential PT respondents, 15 were deemed invalid because
these respondents did not use e-mail, personal computers or Internet to
carry out their work.
Approximate number of e-mails, which bounced
Approximate number of invalid respondents
6.
:
:
10
15
Facts and figures
Below are the facts and figures on the follow-up action for responses:
Total number of potential respondents contacted
141
- Part-timers
133
- Virtual team
8
:
Approximate total number of phone calls made
43
:
Approximate total
:
325
number of correspondences through
- With part-timers
297
- With virtual team 28
e-mails
Total number of faxes made
:
2
Total number of respondents
- Part-timers
58
- Virtual team
:
66
8
Refer to Appendix 4 for the Follow-up Action and list of stakeholders.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
31
SECTION IV
FINDINGS
In this section of the report, the Team has complied the findings from home
visits focus group discussion and survey.
Refer to Appendix 5 for findings on home visits and FGD - “Report on the
M4M Interviews and Focus Group Discussions”
Refer to Appendix 6 for findings on survey/long questionnaire - “SPSS
Analysis Summary”
SECTION V
SUMMARY
The summary on the findings from the study is as attached Appendix 7 - ”
The Study of How Gender Dynamics Affect Teleworkers’ Performance in
Malaysia”
SECTION VI
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The
most
apparent
feedback
from
the
study
seemed
to
point
to
unquestionable and utmost priority for women: primary roles for women as
caregiver for her family and the responsibilities of raising children. Based on
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
32
these pre-requisite conditions set inadvertently by the society, women have
conformed and accepted it as a way of life. To enable women to cope with
the multiple roles, there seems to be a general consensus among teleworkers
surveyed that teleworking could be a solution for women as it can fuse family
and career together - “best of both worlds”. The flexibility of managing time
to suit family and work is essentially the essence of teleworking.
From the study, it was found that generally teleworking improves women’s
lives because it:
i)
Increased confidence and level of happiness as teleworkers, not only,
have expanded their interest outside family life but they can contribute
positively to society and augment family’s income;
Most female teleworkers have worked outside home before marriage
and they gave up career to provide for their family and then, take on
work
after
the
children
have
grown
up.
Teleworking
provides
opportunities to keep abreast with developments outside family lives
and at the same time, get paid for their work. This is important for
self-reliance and women’s emancipation.
ii)
Improved ICT skills as they can troubleshoot minor computer problems
on their own:
iii)
Increased potential to build bigger business. Teleworking is viewed as
a platform to start-off their business;
vi)
Allows better time management, as they do not have to deal with
traffic or office politics;
v)
Provides an avenue for foreign wives to work;
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
33
From the study, almost all findings relate equally to both male and female
teleworkers and there is also little significance in the differences. This is due
to insufficient sample size of male teleworkers in the study (i.e. total of 9
from home visits = 2 and survey/LQ = 7) and also the total sample size of
66. It is difficult to draw conclusions on social changes brought by
teleworking. Hence, there is a need to develop and evaluate teleworking
challenges continuously to take into account experiences of more teleworkers
to reassess the impact of teleworking. A follow-up study to deliberate on
gender-specific issues and challenges of teleworkers should be carried out to
substantiate the initials findings from this report.
The follow-up study can be developed based on the initial findings herein.
1.0Problems faced by teleworkers and the impacts on women’s lives and
on their families
a)
Separating family life and work
Unlike work outside home, when one leaves for work, she is momentarily
separated
from
family
life.
By
integrating
office
into
home,
female
teleworkers become greatly affected as it was found that they have problems
separating both. However, for male teleworkers, they do not have such
problems as they can work uninterrupted even during the evenings and
weekends. Further analysis is required to determine the reasons attributed to
this thought pattern.
b)
Children become top priority
Both male and female teleworkers indicated children as top priority. Although
teleworkers are likely to spend more time with their children, it can be a
double-edged sword, as they are also more likely to be interrupted by their
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
34
children when they work and some even have to stop work when their
children come home. The study also revealed that not only children benefit
from teleworking as spouses too received equally top priority. Hence,
teleworking strengthens family institution.
To ensure success of any management schemes for teleworkers, the
management should take into account teleworkers’ family lives.
c)
Perceptions of their families and peers
Perceptions of family members and peers that teleworking is not real work
and as a result of this, teleworkers do not get adequate support from families
and society.
Family members and friends often assume teleworkers are
available to do chores and run errands. Moreover, male teleworkers are
viewed, as not fulfilling their role to provide for their family when they do not
work outside. The society is “so conditioned to office 9 to 5 = working, that
we ourselves forget that doing anything else falls short of working”.
The government should play a role to create awareness and recognize
teleworking as legitimate work to enable teleworkers to get support and
entitlement from family members, society and working clients. Further
analysis should compare incentives (including EPF, Socso, insurance, etc.)
and financial aids available or unavailable for those who work outside the
home. The extent of safety net for teleworkers must be explored.
d)
Role expectation
Teleworkers, especially female teleworkers have multiple and equally
important roles to play at home and in the society. One of the major
advantages of teleworking is that it offers the flexibility in terms of time
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
35
management. It allows room for manoeuvre, thus, teleworkers can set their
own pace for work and family. This is important as it was found that some
female teleworkers have an added responsibility of caring for the elderly and
disabled family member (none of the male teleworkers care for the elderly or
disabled family member!). Hence, the flexibility of managing their time
provides the crucial advantage to enable female teleworkers to juggle
multiple roles. In this sense, they are much happier as they can cope with
their roles easier.
Interestingly, a departure from traditional homemaker’s roles of fulfilling the
family needs only, the survey revealed that neither male nor female
teleworkers would want their spouses to be full-time homemakers. They see
themselves not only as breadwinners but also childcare providers. However,
female teleworkers seem to have far more responsibilities, as they are likely
to see themselves as cook, teachers, chauffeurs and event organizers too.
Although, some male teleworkers are sole decision-makers in the family,
majority of the teleworkers surveyed ranked decision making as a shared
responsibility between them and their spouses.
This indicates that women
not only carry out traditional roles in modern society, they have become
more self-reliant as they are capable of carrying multi-tasking roles
efficiently. This could have a detrimental effect on their health, hence, policy
makers should give due recognition on women’s role as unpaid labour.
e)
Family involvement in household tasks
From the survey, it was found that most teleworkers do not stop working
when others come home although they placed their children and spouses as
priorities ahead of their careers. Three quarters of the teleworkers surveyed
have their spouses helping with chores although they have maids at home.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
36
The finding indicates that family members are independent and they would
get themselves involved in household chores. Findings from interviews with
male teleworkers indicate that they are more involved in family life since
they started teleworking However, they acknowledged that they can be
selective of chores while their wives are still required to handle household
chores when she comes back from work outside home. All in all, teleworking
has brought positive changes, as men are more involved with their family
lives.
f)
Spousal support
Most teleworkers received support from their spouses. Support from spouses
and children are critical in the success of teleworking. Without these support,
it may eventually undermine work quality and limit telework. The support will
enable teleworkers to work uninterrupted within a conducive and dedicated
workstation. Instances of spousal support include purchasing necessary
equipment, offering technical and work-related support and taking care of
children when wife/husband telework.
g)
Knowledge and technical support
Most of the female teleworkers surveyed felt that they have adequate IT
skills to start off as they have the knowledge needed and also are paid fairly
for their work. However, they felt that they do not have enough technical
support. So far, most of them seek their spouses and children’s help for
repairing, or if they have to pay professionals, they have to bear the
expenses themselves. The latter could amount to a relatively hefty sum for
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
37
some. Homemakers who have just started out and those who receive
no/little support from their families, may not be able to afford this.
Teleworking schemes may consider some forms of compensation to help
teleworkers to reduce their overheads.
There is a lack of affordable training for women interested in computer-based
teleworking as more female teleworkers wished for more training. These
courses are available but there is a lack of promotion. In contrast, male
teleworkers learnt from previous employment.
h)
Feasibility of setting up a virtual office
Teleworkers have to use their own funds to buy equipments for their home
offices. Hence, teleworking becomes more expensive than work outside
home. Homemakers who are interested to telework may not have the means
to start out even though they may have acquired the skills. In the survey, it
was found that most of the teleworkers spent at least RM5,000 or less to setup their home offices.
As for operational cost, it was found that a quarter of the sample spent
RM300 and more per month on office expenses, the remaining spent
anything between RM50 and above.
While some female teleworkers spent
less than RM150 per month, male teleworkers spent more than RM150 per
month. Most of the teleworkers earn enough to cover their expenses but in
the event of technical breakdown, the expenses could increase manifold. It
is important to note that most of the female teleworkers share their
computers with their family members, thereby increasing the risk of
computer breakdowns and virus attacks. So the costs of repair do not
necessarily mean that they are the technical costs incurred for teleworking.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
38
This study does take into account other additional costs such as training,
paying for Internet access, etc. There is a possibility that the earnings may
not be enough to cover all the other expenses especially if they only
freelance occasionally. ICT tools and connections must be affordable for
people, particularly women who are interested to telework. Current cost is
too high as it is metered and does not encourage people to stay online for
too long.
2.0
Monitor productivity and efficiency of teleworkers
a)
Time-block
Male and female teleworkers are almost equally likely to have a block of time
to work without interruption. However, female teleworkers are more likely to
experience work interruption when children come home.
b)
Job satisfaction and output
Male and female teleworkers are almost equally satisfied with their work
output and enjoy working from home. However, the possibility of female
teleworkers facing difficulties in completing work is much higher because
some of them have to stop work when others come home and furthermore,
they are more likely to share computers with other family members. These
difficulties have resulted in disruption of workflow and this could be one of
the reasons attributed to their inability to cover their expenses.
c)
Work discipline and supervision
Although there is a need for clear and strict management practices to ensure
completion of work, teleworking management should be mindful that
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
39
flexibility is the essence of teleworking and hence, there should be clear
instructions, deliverables and deadlines. Instead of focusing on time-use and
fixed working hours, teleworkers should be assessed based on output rather
than time-use. Based on the survey, male teleworkers have no problem
completing their tasks but some female teleworkers do encounter problems.
d)
Working hours
Based on the small sample size, male teleworkers appear to be more willing
to work during evenings and weekends, while some women are not. All male
teleworkers check their e-mail at least once a day and on weekends too.
There could be contributing factors determining the working hours of
teleworkers, e.g. children’s age, etc.
e)
Dedicated workstation
Male teleworker are likely to have adequate, and convenient workstations
compared to female teleworkers. Some of the female teleworkers have to
share computers with others. Some female teleworkers are allowed a space
to work with little distractions if their spouses support them.
From the survey, it was found that those who have no problems completing
their work are more likely to indicate that they have a quiet and dedicated
space to work, although they do wish that they had more space. In addition,
they are also more likely to have adequate equipment, hence, being properly
equipped is necessary to help teleworkers to complete jobs. Incidentally, all
male teleworkers have no problem completing their work.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
40
e)
Data security
Based on the survey, it was found that three-quarter of the sample have a backup
plan.
f)
Managing teleworkers
Managing teleworking team within structured organization must not only be
professional but also take into account the essence of teleworking, i.e. the
flexibility of managing time to fit family life and work. Although management
should have clear and strict management practices to ensure workers
complete their tasks, it should be regulated to focus on output rather than
time-use. There should be clear tasks, deliverables and deadlines for
teleworkers. It is also important that management practices transparency
and accountability in all procedural implementation.
At this stage, it is difficult to be conclusive as feedback received is based on
one management style of a teleworking organization.
g) Internet Access
Internet access should be made more affordable and trouble-free as most
teleworkers have encountered trouble connecting to the Internet. Down time
affects productivity.
3.0
Identify the characteristics and skills needed by a woman to be able to
benefit fully from working from home
A cursory examination seemed to reveal that male teleworkers surveyed are
more efficient than female teleworkers because they are more committed to
their work. Indicators of efficiency include regularity of checking e-mails (at
least once a day) and also during weekends, have a dedicated workstation,
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
41
satisfied with their work output and are paid fairly; and also have no problem
completing tasks. Based on these findings, hypothetically, female teleworkers
should emulate male teleworkers working pattern in order to be efficient
teleworkers.
i)
Adequate office equipment;
ii)
Have a dedicated workstation, preferably exclusive rights to computer;
iii)
Have time-block with minimum distraction;
iv)
Have strong family support, especially from spouse and children;
v) Strong work discipline to ensure completion of tasks even if they have to
work during weekends and evenings;
vi)
Have interest in IT
vii)
Worked outside home before
However, further analysis to capture more opinions from male teleworkers is
required because gender-specific role for men and women in the society
differs.
4.0
Profile of teleworker
At this stage, it is difficult to ascertain the most common profile of a
teleworker in Malaysia. But, teleworking being mostly solitary pursuit, some
of the more obvious characteristics of an ideal teleworkers would be honesty,
self-discipline, commitment and having ICT communication skills.
The immediate task for M4M is to review the initial findings by capturing the
experiences of a higher number of teleworkers, especially male teleworkers.
It is also necessary to continuously develop, observe and evaluate social
changes on gender-specific issues by establishing appropriate indicators.
GEM GENDER METHODOLOGY FOR INTERNET AND ICT INITIATIVES
42