Women in University Administration: A Comparative Study of Public and Private Universities in Bangladesh

Abstract

The global trend of women's employment has shown a notable increase in recent decades as compared to previous periods. Women have actively pursued education and undertaken independent efforts to construct their own sense of self, self-sufficiency, and motivation to contribute to the advancement of society, the economy, and the country. The proportion of women in the labor force is on the rise in America, Europe, and the Asian subcontinent. However, there is a notable lack of significant growth in the representation of women in middle and upper management positions inside organizations. The growth of women's careers is not facilitated primarily via the attainment of frequent promotions and high-paying, prominent management positions. Despite the possession of educational credentials, talents, and competence by women, within this particular domain, women encountered instances of gender inequality and discrimination. The individuals encountered intangible obstacles that are deeply ingrained within the organization’s culture, as well as social and family gender stereotyping problems. Bangladesh has emerged as a burgeoning middle-income emerging country within the Asian subcontinent. According to research by UNB, Bangladesh has attained the highest level of gender parity in South Asia, with a score of 72.2%, as shown by the Global Gender Gap Research 2023 published by the World Economic Forum (WEF). Bangladesh has 59th place in the global ranking. Bangladesh has shown a notable achievement in both the education sector and gender parity, with a commendable rate of 93.6%. Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, has a larger proportion of female literacy compared to male literacy, with the male-to-female ratio being about near too equal. Due to its reputation for offering safe and encouraging work environments that are conducive to women's participation, there is a perception that the education sector employs a majority of women. This study endeavor aims to investigate the xx actual circumstances experienced by female employees in administrative roles within both public and private university settings. The individual's professional trajectory and the many determinants that influence both their job advancement and personal well-being. The primary aim of this research was to conduct a comparative analysis of the challenges encountered by women in administrative roles inside public and private universities in Bangladesh. Additionally, the study sought to provide principles that promote gender equality and empower women in these institutions. The research study was conducted at four public and four private universities located in Dhaka city, focusing on the observation that a significant number of public and private institutions are situated in Dhaka city. A survey questionnaire was used to gather data pertaining to the challenges encountered, capacity development, career progression, and socio-economic factors. This research focuses on the selection of women workers employed in administrative roles inside both public and private universities. The selection criteria for participants are based on their employment positions and other pertinent factors. The present study used a quantitative research design, using a semi-structured questionnaire as the primary data collection instrument. The target population consisted of women in administrative roles within public and private universities located in Dhaka city. The primary objective of this empirical investigation was to identify the challenges encountered by female professionals employed in administrative roles across both public and private universities. Additionally, the research aimed to examine purported strategies and recommendations aimed at mitigating these issues in their existing positions as well as facilitating their career progression within the education sector. In this study, it is found that 89.745% of women respondents from public universities hold graduate-level degrees and 95.13% of women respondents have graduate-level degrees from private universities. Their occupational status in higher rank or organizational hierarchy is very poor compared to their male counterparts in public and private universities. It is observed that in a public university, for instance, Dhaka University, male employees belonged to 66.08% of the 1st-grade level of hierarchy and female employees belonged to 33.91%. In a private university, North South University 78.95% of male employees belonged to the upper hierarchy position of senior officer and 21.05% of female employees belonged to senior officer positions. This research study reveals that a significant majority of workers in administrative job roles, across all levels, at both public and private universities in Dhaka xxi city, Bangladesh, are male. Women encounter a variety of complex hurdles in order to maintain their employment. The challenges faced by female workers differ based on the type and circumstances of their employment in both public and private universities. The phenomena of Jone Acher's inequality regime, Marilyn Loden's glass ceiling effect, and David Purcell's glass ceiling effect have been clearly seen. Here, Jone Acher’s inequality regime, Marilyn Loden’s, and David Purcell’s glass ceiling effect have been clearly observed. Comparatively in private universities inequality regime and glass ceiling effect are more than in public universities. The primary objective of this research project is to do a comprehensive comparative analysis of women working in administrative positions within public and private organizations located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The comparison will be conducted by considering several pertinent elements. These indicators include several dimensions, including the experience of facing challenges, the availability of possibilities for career advancement, factors impeding professional development, and overall satisfaction with one's job. The research used bivariate analysis as a method to investigate the association between the main indicators and their corresponding factors. Furthermore, a binary logistic regression model was used to do multivariate analysis. The study particularly examined a subset of variables that were determined to have statistical significance in the bivariate analysis, with a significance threshold set at 5%.The research conducted on participants from public universities, specifically within the framework of bivariate analysis, revealed that variables including harassment, childcare responsibilities, satisfaction with office equipment, and the presence of a dual role were identified as significant factors influencing the perceived level of challenges. The analytical result shows that facing harassment (p-value> 0.001) is a highly statistically significant factor for challenges facing women working in the public universities administrative position of Dhaka city in Bangladesh. It can be observed that the number of women who face harassment is 3.56 times probably compared with the women who do not face harassment. (OR =3.56, 95% CI: (1.91, 6.61). The analytical result indicates that there is a statistically significant relationship between women who face difficulties in caring for their children (p-value = 0.019) and the challenges experienced by women working in administrative positions in public universities in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. Women who face problems in taking care of children are 11.77 times more likely to experience these difficulties compared to women who do not face any challenges in taking care for children. The odds ratio is (11.77, with a 95%) confidence interval ranging xxii from (CI :1.50 to 91.83). The obtained analytical result indicates that the presence of difficulties with office equipment among women (p-value=0.015) is a statistically significant determinant for the obstacles encountered by women employed in administrative positions inside public universities in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. There is evidence to suggest that women who express satisfaction with office equipment are 0.47 times more likely to exhibit this sentiment compared to women who do not express satisfaction with office equipment. The odds ratio (OR) was found to be 0.47, with a 95% confidence interval (CI:) ranging from 0.26 to 0.86. The analytical findings indicate that women who encounter difficulties in balancing several tasks have a very significant statistical impact (p-value <0.001) on the challenges faced by women working in public universities in Bangladesh. Research indicates that women who are required to do multiple roles are 1.64 times more likely to do so compared to women who do not have such obligations. The odds ratio (OR) was found to be 1.64, with a 95% confidence interval (CI:) ranging from 0.97 to 2.77. In the research conducted on respondents from private universities, it was observed that workload had a substantial impact on the perceived level of difficulty. The results attained from fitting the logistic regression model are concise. There is a significant association between satisfaction with office equipment and facing challenges with the current job (p-value =0.049) among women employed in private universities in Bangladesh. There is evidence to suggest that women who perceive the distribution of workload to be equitable are 0.38 times less inclined compared to women who do not perceive the distribution of workload to be equitable. The odds ratio (OR) was found to be 0.38, with a 95% confidence interval (CI:) ranging from 0.14 to 0.99. In the context of public universities, it was shown that human resources policies and discrimination were identified as key factors in the timely promotion of individuals, as determined using bivariate analysis (p-value = 0.003) for human resources policies. The results come from fitting the logistic regression model are in short: It can be perceived that women who are satisfied with the human resource policies are 2.26 times expected compared with the women who are not satisfied with the human resource policies. (OR =2.26, 95% CI :1.32,3.89). xxiii The obtained analytical result provides evidence that women who experience discrimination in the context of promotion exhibit a statistically significant relationship (p-value = 0.012). It can be realized that women who think there exists discrimination are 0.47 times less likely to correspond with women who do not think so. (OR =0.47, 95% CI: 0.26,0.84). In the context of private universities, specifically in the context of bivariate analysis, it was shown that the proper reorganization of contribution had a substantial impact on timely promotion. The outcomes obtained from fitting the logistic regression model are potted: There is a significant association between contribution properly evaluated with the current job (p-value = 0.023) among women employed in private universities in Bangladesh. It can be seen that women who think that contribution is properly evaluated are 2.98 times more likely compared with the women who do not think that contribution is properly evaluated. (OR =2.98, 95% CI :1.16,0.24). Among the participants from public universities, specifically in the context of bivariate analysis (p=0.010), it was seen that human resources policies played a major role as a barrier to career advancement. The outcome found from fitting the logistic regression model is potted. It can be found that women who are satisfied with human resource policies is 0.33 times less likely comparing with the women who are not satisfied with human resource policies. (OR =0.33, 95% CI:0.17,0.65) In the domain of private universities, specifically in the context of respondents, bivariate analysis revealed that human resource policies were identified as a key factor contributing to barriers to career advancement. There is a significant association between human resources policies and facing barriers to career advancement (p-value = 0.039) among women employed in private universities in Bangladesh. It can be perceived that women who are satisfied with human resources policies are 0.24 times less likely compared with women who are not satisfied with human resources policies. (OR =0.24, 95% CI:0.06,0.93). In the study conducted on respondents from public universities, it was found that several factors were significantly associated with overall satisfaction. Specifically, promotion within the appropriate time frame, salary satisfaction, satisfaction with office equipment, enhanced social status, job security concerns, and proper recognition of contributions were all found to be significant in bivariate analysis. The obtained analytical outcome indicates that promotion within the designated time period (p-value = 0.046) has statistical significance as a determinant of overall work satisfaction among female employees at public universities in Bangladesh. The data indicates that women xxiv who get promotions in a timely manner are 2.14 times more likely to do so compared to women who do not receive promotions in a timely manner. The odds ratio (OR) was found to be 2.14 with a 95% confidence interval. The confidence interval for the given data is (CI: 1.01, 4.5). The analysis reveals that the current salary (p-value <0.001) is a highly statistically significant factor for overall job satisfaction among women employed in public universities of Bangladesh. The data shows that women who are satisfied with their current salary are 4.09 times more likely than women who are not satisfied with their salary. The odds ratio is 4.09, with a 95% confidence interval ranging from (CI:1.89 to 8.67). The analysis reveals that being satisfied with office equipment (p-value < 0.001) is a highly statistically significant factor for overall job satisfaction among women employed in public universities of Bangladesh. The data indicates that women who are satisfied with office equipment are 3.61 times more likely than women who are not satisfied with office equipment (OR = 3.61, 95% CI: 1.69, 7.69). The results of the analysis indicate that there is a significant relationship between enhanced status in society (p-value<0.001) and overall job satisfaction among women working in public universities in Bangladesh. It can be observed that women who believe that jobs have enhanced their status in society are 4.79 times more likely than women who do not hold this belief. The odds ratio is 4.79, with a 95% confidence interval ranging from (CI:2.06 to 11.02).The analytical result reveals that job security (p-value = 0.042) is a statistically significant factor that contributes to overall job satisfaction among women employed in public universities of Bangladesh. This finding suggests that feeling stressed about job security is an important aspect to consider when assessing job satisfaction in this group. It is evident that women who feel stressed about job security are 0.42 times less likely to experience this stress compared to women who do not have concerns about job security. The odds ratio is 0.42 with a 95% confidence interval. The confidence interval is (CI: 0.18, 0.97). The analysis reveals that a highly statistically significant factor for overall job satisfaction among women employed in public universities of Bangladesh is the proper recognition of contributions, as indicated by a (p-value of less than 0. 001). The number of women who believe their contributions have been properly recognized is 6.47 times higher than the number of women who do not feel their contributions have been properly recognized. The odds ratio is 6.47, with a 95% confidence interval ranging from (CI: 3.05 to 13.78). xxv In the case of respondents from private universities, specifically in the context of bivariate analysis, it was shown that experiencing stress related to job security and seeing one's contributions adequately acknowledged were identified as major factors influencing total job satisfaction. The findings of the analytical results indicate that job security is a statistically significant factor (p-value = 0.049) in determining total job satisfaction among women who are employed at private universities in Dhaka city, Bangladesh. It is evident that women who experience tension over work security are 0.46 times less likely to suffer this stress compared to women who do not have concerns about job security. The odds ratio (OR) is calculated to be 0.46, with a 95% confidence interval. The confidence interval for the given data is (CI: 0.21, 1.01). The findings of the analysis indicate that the correct rearrangement of contributions (p-value <0.001) is a factor of high statistical significance in relation to the overall job satisfaction of women working in private universities in Bangladesh. There is a notable correlation between women who see their contributions as being adequately acknowledged and a 6.08 times higher likelihood compared to women who do not perceive their contributions as being adequately acknowledged. The odds ratio (OR) was found to be 6.08, with a 95% confidence interval (CI) ranging from 2.73 to 13.60. Female workers working in both public and private universities have made significant contributions to the development of our nation and the socio-economic progress of our country. This research study examines the challenges and gender discrimination faced by women employees in public universities. These challenges arise from their responsibilities related to factors such as harassment, childcare, satisfaction with office equipment, and dual roles. The study also highlights the unequal distribution of workload as a source of challenges and discrimination against women employees in private universities. This study examines the impact of human resources policies and discriminatory practices on the advancement of promotion opportunities for women employed at public universities. The promotion of private universities in this region is influenced by factors of contribution and effective restructuring, as reported by the respondents. This study examines the impact of human resource policies on career development barriers faced by women employed in public universities. Interestingly, within the realm of private universities, it has been shown that female workers face hindrances in their career progression, with human resources policies being identified as a contributing factor. xxvi This research study has also revealed that variables such as promotion timing, salary satisfaction, satisfaction with office equipment, enhanced social status, job security stress, and recognition of contributions are strongly correlated with the overall job satisfaction of women employed in public universities. The present study has shown a significant correlation between job satisfaction among female employees at private universities in Dhaka City, Bangladesh, and their perceived stress levels about job security and the effective recognition of their contributions. During the duration of the research survey study, a noteworthy observation was made about the behavior of public university respondents, who exhibited a greater propensity to express their opinions in a manner characterized by freedom and fairness. The authors observed that there was an atmosphere conducive to the expression of diverse viewpoints. In contrast, respondents at private universities had a propensity towards being reserved, introverted, and cautious when expressing their views. In addition to being aware of the limitations and difficulties associated with their private sector employment, individuals refrained from openly expressing their genuine opinions and divulging factual information due to concerns over potential threats to their job security. Additionally, it is worth noting that individuals place great importance on their occupations as a means to maintain a good standard of life, given the escalating costs associated with basic necessities in the current market. In addition to the significant results of this research study, it is important to acknowledge a fundamental drawback, namely that the study does not include all public and private universities in Bangladesh. The study encompasses a total of eight universities in Dhaka City, Bangladesh, consisting of four public and four private universities. The research specifically targets the female workforce, including 417 employees across these universities. This research study places emphasis on the inclusion of female employees only. There is potential for future comparative studies on male and female administrative employees at both public and private universities in Bangladesh, with a focus on large sample sizes. This research would contribute to the advancement of the discipline.