Any woman around who feels being let down by society and sometimes even by her family? Mauritius women can take heart, this feeling could be quite common and almost universal; at least as regards their achievements in the labour market. Women generally end up somewhere just below the top management level. It is the experience of women internationally. Research undertaken by the International Labour Office shows that the two occupational groups, (i) legislative officials and government administrators and (ii) managers, are predominantly male occupations. In the 44 countries studied, only 16 percent of legislative officials and government administrators are women and 14 percent of managers are women. Women do better in some countries such as Norway and Finland where 45 percent of managers are women.

The situation is much worse for women in Mauritius. Only about 25 percent of all managers in Mauritius are females and it is much lower at the topmost level. It falls to as low as about 5 percent.

The reasons for the poor performance of women in the labour market are not difficult to find. Women have homes to look after and research done here shows that professional women give higher priority to domestic security than professional advancement. This means that if there was a clash between family and career, women chose their families. Are they wrong to do this? Because the labour market then punishes them for having put family first.

Is it so difficult to question the wisdom of the choice of these women. The complementary side to this is the lower divorce rate in Mauritius compared to many other societies in a similar stage of development and more stable families and that children are better cared for. But it does mean that a larger proportion of women could be more frustrated as they are unable to experience a sense of fulfilment for having realised their potential. Levels of psychological stress among women seem indeed to be grown.

Cause for concern

To date, women have borne any seeming frustration and played multiple roles well since the life expectancy of women continues to increase. Yet an improvement as regards the quality of life is slow and there may be a cause for concern.

Whether it be at the home or in the office, women are assessed for what they can deliver. Modern human resource development theories do require a people-centred approach to management and meeting the needs of women should be part of this requirement.

The many professional women?s organisations in Mauritius should begin an advocacy campaign for encouraging women to take their rightful place in modern industry while coping with their responsibilities at home. This cannot be achieved without the support and understanding of their husbands and partners as well as society as a whole. Caring for the family is as much the role of society as it is for male and female partners. Women should not have to bear the full burden of combining their obligations to the family and the workplace and they should not have to make the painful choice between the ?home? and ?work? each time.

V. H.