An Impact on Gender Division of Labour

act on gender CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction

The study sought to assess the effectiveness of gender division of labour on the performance of prison officers at Harare Central Prison. This chapter covered the following: the background to the study, statement of the problem, research questions, research objectives, significance of the study, assumptions, delimitations of the study, limitations and definition of terms. The study made an attempt to expose the problem as it has developed from pre-colonial era to the post-colonial development.

1.1 Background to the Study

Correctional Units in some form or another have existed since ancient time, although the organisation differed vastly from prisons in operation today. In the early years there was no place for women in the correctional services. Zikhali (2009:5) states that ‘the pre-colonial period in Zimbabwe is reflected as having been patriarchal where females had no direct voices in public activities and no control over social resources’. The division of labour was aligned on different biological make-up and mostly by women’s reproduction role (Zikhali 2009).

In the context of government’s increased support for more female labour market participation and a more egalitarian division of labour, work-life balance has come to the forefront of policy discourse in most developing countries (Firestone 2003). Women are not employed uniformly throughout the occupational structure (Hemmens 2002). They are unlikely to have attractive work or opportunities for promotion than men and most likely to work in poor conditions (Giddens 2001). Women are focused in particular types of jobs which are stereotypically seen as female jobs. Oakley (2001) argues that the position of women in the family is mirrored in the employment sector. Giddens (2001) emphasises that women’s jobs are often extensions or additions of their domestic role which involves taking care of, serving, clearing and tidying up after others.

The...