UAE has most women bosses

A new survey has showed that the UAE has more women bosses in comparison to other GCC countries. With 20 per cent of the UAE’s bosses being women, the survey revealed interesting findings. “Women across the MENA region are breaking stereotypes and embracing their careers more wholeheartedly than ever before. There is a desire for equality and it seems that, for the most part, this desire is being met by employers,” said Lama Ataya, Chief Marketing Officer, Bayt.com. The findings were revealed as part of The ‘Women in the MENA Workplace 2012’ survey conducted by Bayt.com, and YouGov. Women who are 25 or below are also strongly motivated to put their education to good use, while those in the 36-45 age bracket want to secure their children’s future. When looking for a job, MENA women take the following into consideration, in order of importance: salary (59 per cent), opportunities for long-term career growth (31 per cent) and health insurance for their whole family (28 per cent). Retirement benefits are important to working women aged 46 and above. Seven out of ten women are comfortable working in mixed-gender environments, in which 74 per cent of all survey respondents work. In Saudi Arabia, 37 per cent of the women work in mixed workplaces; however, they are separated from men. “It is encouraging to find that so many women are comfortable working in mixed-gender environments, which is perhaps a nod to a more Westernised influence over regional society,” said Sundip Chahal, CEO of YouGov. In terms of benefits, the most commonly received is personal health insurance, followed by paid maternity leave; company transport or transport allowance; job-related training and family health insurance. Almost half of the surveyed women (44 per cent) state that fewer opportunities for job promotions are the biggest challenge they face in their work. Stressful and demanding work environments follow, according to 38 per cent, while a third (33 per cent) state that lack of flexible work timings, limited opportunities to perform and insufficient job training and coaching are equally demanding. Sentiments are equally divided in terms of whether women feel they receive equal or less pay than men working within their company (an evenly-split 41 per cent both ways), with women in Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia feeling that they receive less. Four out of ten (40 per cent) of the region’s working women believe that their chances for promotion are dependent more upon their performance than their gender. However, 31 per cent believe that they are at a disadvantage in this respect because they are female. Data for the survey was collected online from May 17 to 30, with 2,185 respondents in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.