25 year-old radio presenter, Nkechi Egwoke*, walked into the office where 2 male colleagues were having a chat. She was about 8 months pregnant at the time. After the usual pleasantries, one of the men, in his mid 50s, said to her “so you’ll soon take maternity leave for 3 months and you’ll be getting paid. This is why if I have a company tomorrow I will not hire women”.
Nkechi was too shocked to respond. She also didn’t want to be regarded as ‘disrespectful’ a label often foisted on women who speak up for themselves, so she kept quiet and moved on.
Nkechi is not unique. Nigerian women have encountered a multitude of obstacles in the workplace, spanning from historical to modern times. Women have frequently been marginalized and excluded from different sectors, facing challenges from cultural norms to systemic biases.
A 2023 study by Vanessa Naidoo, Morris Mthombeni, and Manoj D. Chiba reveals that ambivalent sexism contributes significantly to the scarcity of women in high-level corporate positions worldwide, especially in Africa where inequality is deeply rooted.
Ambivalent sexism is a theory that was developed by psychologists Peter Glick and Susan Fiske to explain the complexities of gender attitudes that can simultaneously seem favorable and unfavorable towards women.
Ambivalent Sexism describes two forms of sexism: hostile sexism and benevolent sexism. Both types support traditional gender roles and the belief that women and men should conform to specific societal roles, but they manifest differently:
Hostile Sexism is overtly negative. It involves antagonistic attitudes and open hostility toward women, often because they are seen as threatening traditional power structures or trying to gain power over men. Hostile sexism includes beliefs that women are inferior to men, or criticisms of women who are perceived as too powerful or non-conforming to traditional roles, while Benevolent Sexism is subtler and often seems positive or protective on the surface. It involves paternalistic, chivalrous beliefs that women need to be protected, cherished, and provided for by men.
Benevolent sexism promotes the idea that women are purer and nicer than men but also less competent in non-traditional roles. It seems complimentary but actually reinforces traditional gender roles and dependency on men. The comment by Nkechi’s older male colleauge fits into this profile.
Ambivalent sexism suggests that these two forms often coexist within individuals or societies, creating a complex mix of attitudes that can be protective or affectionate while also being damaging and restrictive.
Ann Oluwatobi endured emotional and psychological distress when she returned to work just 11 weeks after giving birth.
She felt guilty about being away from her newborn. “Every morning before I go to work, I’d give her a shower and dress her up myself and in the evenings when I return I’d feed her and just try to bond with her. It gave me the feeling that I was not competent as a mum. But being away from her for so long everyday was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do,” she said.
One of the main obstacles for women in the Nigerian workforce is the pressure to prioritize family duties over professional goals. This results in women being disregarded for career advancement chances or feeling pressured to decide between their professional and personal lives.
When women challenge these traditional roles by prioritizing their careers or expressing little interest in traditional domestic roles, they may face hostile sexism manifesting in derogatory comments, less support from colleagues or superiors, or outright discrimination.
A significant form of sexism women encounter is the lack of motherhood-friendly work environments, which forces many to choose between returning to work after childbirth or leaving the workforce entirely. To address this issue, Ann supports extending the duration of maternity leave.
“If only work places could consider maybe increasing maternity leave, most women have even been forced to resign because of how young their babies are at resumption. And others who cannot afford ro resign have to live with the guilt of leaving their newborns in the hands of a total stranger” She said
During the hiring process, many companies explicitly inquire about women’s marital status and future family plans, citing the inability to accommodate maternity leaves and other flexible benefits as their reasoning.
This is a discriminatory practice. These questions are viewed as irrelevant to a candidate’s ability to perform a job and are seen as an attempt to discriminate based on gender or family status.
“Nigerian labor law, under the Labour Act and various anti-discrimination provisions, aims to protect job applicants from discrimination based on personal circumstances that do not affect their professional capabilities. Asking about marital status or family plans clearly lead to biases and discrimination.” Says Nigerian Lawyer, Bimpe Balogun.
Conversely, some companies have facilitated the transition back to work for new mothers by providing in-office crèches. These facilities allow working mothers to leave their babies in a secure environment within the office premises, enabling them to visit and care for their infants conveniently during breaks or as needed.
Mayowa Idowu is the team-lead for a project her company is working on. She was assigned to work with a regional manager who’d supervise the project. “The first day I met this man, I could feel his hungry eyes hovering around my body”.
She became uncomfortable around him. “On one of those days we had to take a field trip to one of our sites, we went in his car. He then made several attempts to touch me during the trip. I firmly asked him to stop touching me and he said I should get out of his car if I didn’t want him to touch me”. Mayowa reported the abuse to her boss who promised to look into the issue but never did.
Just like many other sexual harassment cases women face in the workplace, Mayowa’s concerns were swept under the carpet. This is said to be one of the biggest challenges that women face in the working environment.
The United Nations describe sexual harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. People, particularly women and girls, face sexual harassment in all spaces, from online, to the streets, to their homes, to their places of work.
In the fight against sexual harassment in Nigeria, the National Assembly passed a Sexual Harassment Bill which seeks to check incidences of sexual harassment and protect students from sexual harassment in institutions. The Bill defines sexual harassment and prescribes a jail term for offenders for different offenses ranging from two years up to 14 years and excludes mutual consent as a defense.
In addition, it put into consideration the peculiarity of the Nigerian society and eradicated the requirement to prove intent on the part of the accused. This Bill, the Sexual Harassment Bill, 2019, though better equipped for the job, still lacks scope because it focuses only on female students in tertiary institutions.
Despite the legal safeguards in place to prevent gender discrimination, the enforcement mechanisms are ineffective, leaving women at risk of exploitation and mistreatment at work.
For Ebunoluwa Babawale, experiencing pay discrimination came as a rude shock. She had just started a new job, elated to have been selected after series of nerve-wracking interviews. The monthly remuneration and perks that came with the job was everything she had hoped for and she was ready to give her all. A few months in, she learned her male colleague who had the same job description as her, was earning considerably more.
“I could not believe my ears. I thought perhaps he had made a mistake so I asked for the purpose of clarity and I found out my colleagues salary was 20 per cent higher than mine. We had the same qualifications so I was confused as to why that was the case”
When she asked about it, her boss’s response was direct in it’s sexism. He said my (male) colleague earns more because he’s a man who has a family to cater for, and I will be catered for by my husband”, she recounted.
Studies have demonstrated that businesses with diverse leadership groups typically surpass their counterparts in terms of financial performance. This highlights the importance of gender diversity in the workplace and the necessity for organizations to actively overcome obstacles to women’s participation.
“Encouraging equal opportunities for career growth, offering assistance for maintaining work-life balance, and establishing measures to combat gender-based discrimination can help companies foster environments where women can excel and make valuable contributions” Shayo Adeoluwa, a human resource manager, said.
Shayo who is an advocate for equal rights and women inclusion strongly believes that “measures like affordable childcare, parental leave, and anti-discrimination laws can contribute to creating a more equal environment for women”. She also believes that it is essential for the government to play a role in promoting women’s participation in the workforce.
“It is a promising change to see that many social welfare organizations like the UN are raising this concern globally and pledging to remove gender bias in the workplace especially as it affects women”.
Written By Grace Akan-Francis
