Women employees in banks rising, foreign banks ahead

The participation of women employees in banks operating in Bangladesh is on the rise, with foreign banks leading the way in terms of gender diversity.

According to a report from the central bank, as of the end of June, the total workforce in the country's banking sector was around 2 lakh. Among them, 32,567, or 16.32%, were women. This represents a 3-basis point increase compared to December.

Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director of Mutual Trust Bank, said the participation of women in education has increased significantly.

"Consequently, when we issue job circulars, we receive more applications from women. With the rising number of applicants, our recruitment of women has also increased. This is the primary reason for the growing number of women employees in banks," he told The Business Standard.

Mentioning that the output from women employees is satisfactory, the seasoned banker said women employees are attentive to their work. They minimise time wastage and perform their duties properly. That is why banks are interested in hiring women.

According to data from the Bangladesh Bank, the number of women employees in all banks has not increased equally. Foreign banks are at the top, with 24.11% of the total workforce being women. It stood at 23.90% at the end of December.

Apart from this, there has been a significant increase in the employment of women in private and specialised banks. However, the number of women employees in state-owned banks has decreased in the last six months from 16.52% to 16.19%, according to the data.

A total of 3,404 new employees were appointed in banks during January–June. Among them, 628, or 18.45%, are women.

Mentioning that many banks are offering work-from-home opportunities to keep women ahead in the workplace, Syed Mahbubur Rahman said there are many bank jobs that can be done from home.

"If women workers find it difficult to come to the office, we involve them in such activities so that they do not lag behind in their careers. In addition, many banks have started daycare for the children of their employees. As a result, mothers are now able to do their work by leaving their children in these day-cares," he added.

The banker commented that the participation of women in the upper management level has increased, but it is still not satisfactory.

According to the central bank report, a review of the Gender Equality Report submitted by banks during January–June 2023 showed that women employees at the entry level stood at 16.99%, mid-level at 15.77%, and higher level at 9.28%.

An analysis of the data shows that the participation of women in the banking sector is high at the initial stage. At the same time, the participation rate of women employees under the age of 30 in banks is 21.33%, which is more than double that of women officers over 50 at 9.22%.

When asked why the participation of women at the upper management level is decreasing, Syed Mahbubur Rahaman said women go on leave during the maternity period. Besides, they have to take responsibility for many family tasks, so it becomes difficult for them to pay equal attention to work.

"As a result, they have to fall back on many things, which many cannot afford. We have seen that many women workers drop out at an early age due to these reasons," he added.