Women’s employment and the changing family pattern in Ankole Sub-region- Uganda

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue XII, December 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186

Women’s employment and the changing family pattern in Ankole Sub-region- Uganda

Asiimire Donath, Gertrude Fester, Medard Twinamatsiko, Benard Nuwatuhaire
Bishop Stuart University, Uganda

Abstract: This study employed a case study design using phenomenological stances of qualitative research to collect data from three districts of Mbarara, Bushenyi and Kiruhura and the objective of the study was to find out how women’s entrance in formal employment has contributed to changes in marriage and gender roles. Drawing from 17 interviews (with women activists, community development officers, probation officers, grade II magistrates, Gender based organisation managers, political leaders, religious leaders, local leaders) and 5 FGDs (with household heads, women in formal and informal employment), findings revealed that, women’s employment leads to a shift in marriage. The findings further reveal that women’s employment increases women’s conflicting roles (the tripartite roles). The study concluded that, women’s employment is significantly related to marriage and gender roles, increasing numbers of women in formal and informal employment has led to delays in marriage, child birth and increases in conflicting roles for women. Thus the study recommended that gender-responsive social protection systems should be adopted by all places of work, encourage and support institutions and all places of work to put provisions for day care centres and increase on maternity leave days.

Key words: Women’s employment, marriage and gender roles.

I. INTRODUCTION

Globally, family patterns have been progressively changing due to industrialisation and many other reasons (Xu & Xue, 2016). In particular, most attributes of these changes have been premised on Women’s employment (Magezi, 2018). Studies conducted by Magezi (2018), Zimmermann and Konietzka (2018) and Zaitseva, Bannykh, and Kostina (2019) indicate that women’s employment in both developed and developing countries, has potential to influence marital and other relationships, assigned gender roles, social and emotional family ties . In the face of women employment, women’s roles in a family change from women being mere chattels to become co-providers (Irungu & Sassa, 2017). The global changing family patterns in the face of women employment have been a subject of discussion for quite some time as to whether the objectives of women employment are positively perceived by society or not (Fulu & Miedema, 2016; Mammen & Paxson, 2000; Moghadam, 2004; Veen & Shakeel, 2019).

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