Family, motherhood primarily behind 75% of career breaks among women: BRAC survey

Working women in Bangladesh often face interruptions in their careers, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Around 75 percent of those who leave the workforce do so primarily due to family responsibilities and motherhood, according to a survey conducted by BRAC.

The findings were shared at a media briefing today at BRAC Centre Inn in Dhaka's Mohakhali.

BRAC’s Chief People and Culture Officer Moutushi Kabir said many women also leave their jobs due to unfavourable workplace environments, pursuit of higher education, and social pressure.

The survey, conducted among women who had taken career breaks, found that 38.8 percent cited family responsibilities and 36 percent maternity as the main reasons for leaving their jobs.

Other reasons included personal causes (18.8 percent), higher education (14.4 percent), unfavourable workplace environments (8.5 percent) and social pressure (4.7 percent).

The event was organised ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8, with speakers expressing hope that initiatives supporting women’s return to work would help build a more inclusive and women-friendly society.

According to the survey, women seeking to return to work cited career advancement (76.5 percent) as their main motivation, followed by building a personal identity (62.2 percent), boosting self-confidence (57.7 percent), financial independence (56.5 percent) and contributing to family's well-being (42.7 percent).

The data also showed that 6.6 percent of applicants had career breaks of more than six years, while the largest group -- 67.9 percent -- had breaks of one to two years.

Meanwhile, 28.6 percent had more than seven years of professional experience, while 58 percent had between three and five years.

To support women returning to the workforce, BRAC has relaunched its Bridge Returnship programme. This year, more than 1,200 women applied, with 24 selected after several rounds of screening to work with different BRAC programmes for six months. The survey was conducted on the 1200 applicants.

Participants will receive skills development training, leadership workshops and mentoring. BRAC will also connect them with NGOs, private sector organisations and corporate institutions to help them find suitable employment.

The programme was first launched last year, when 15 participants were selected from about 1,100 applicants.