I read with amusement and much concurrence about an article written by another reader in Today's forum. The article was candid about the slightly unfair expectations and responsibilities of a woman in a family.
Despite the higher education level and the narrowing of gap between the sexes in the workforce, women are generally expected to take the primary role in taking care of the family. For instance, women are still expected to do a larger share of the household chores, eg cooking, washing of clothes etc. When the children fell sick, women are expected to drop their work to take care of the child. In the event that someone really needs to stay at home, the women are expected to be the one to quit from her job. Many justified that these are mainly due to women having a natural maternal instinct and thus can better take care of the kids and household chores. The reason for women being asked to leave the workforce, in the event someone needs to stay at home, was women normally earn lower pay than their husbands.
Nothwithstanding that there is some truth in some of the justifications for expecting the women to do more for the family, to the extent of sacrificing their jobs, I guess it is timely that the men should take on a more active role. To a large extent, I acknowledged that many men nowadays are contributing more to the family, not just in monetary terms. Many men have attempted to share the household chores and even help in taking care of the kids. However, more can be done. This is especially so when many women have taken on jobs which are more demanding.
Starting a family may not be too difficult. Sustaining a family is no easy feat which requires both the husband and wife to work together and even making personal sacrifices when the needs arise.
Anyway, I encourage you to read the article if you can grab hold of yesterday's Today.
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