Career and life coping strategies : a case study from ministry of public administration in Bangladesh

Abstract

This study was conducted to achieve the objectives of identifying the socioeconomic factors that influence career choice, analyzing the organizational factors inhibiting professionals’ career and life, and analyzing the coping strategies utilized by the professionals in encountering those barriers.

This is a qualitative study based on a case study research design. Eight cases on individuals in the Ministry of Public Administration were conducted. In-depth interviews were used to collect data from thirty-one professionals, including seventeen women that were purposively selected. Data were collected based on a checklist prepared to achieve the above-mentioned objectives. Data triangulation was maintained following the primary and secondary sources. Theoretical issues and supportive data were collected from the relevant literature, reports, research articles, and books. The research lacks the views of family members except service-holder spouses.

The choice of a career is influenced by a number factors; namely, family background, parents with higher education status, social values, social demand for a better bride and bridegroom, respect given to civil servants in the society, family financial crisis, and the professional’s level of education. The case studies showed that organizational issues such as job security, inherent power and authority of civil service, desire for changing one’s career based on previous experience in the private sector, different placement, prospects for promotion, and prospects for professional development affect their live and career. Parents, especially fathers, influence or motivate women’s career choices. For men, previous work experience, personal motivation, financial crisis in the family, demand for a bride or groom, and the bread winner concept influence their career choice. Civil service in Bangladesh is perceived as a sector with job security, social values, power and authority, and promotion prospects. Given a job in the civil service one is entitled to a good salary, accommodations, fringe benefits, and various allowances.

The following are the organizational factors influencing professionals’ career and life and that force them to adapt certain coping strategies. Some of these factors limit the professionals’ performance in the workplace and hinder the professionals’ opportunity to spend quality time at home. The transfer of professionals relocates the family and reduces the time spent with family members and also creates an opportunity to live with family members for which they try to follow the strategy of being posted in desired places. The data showed that men were transferred more than women. This is because women have social connections; for instance, their husbands are working professionals and have influence on transfers. This means that a transfer is inflicted by among other things power and class. The fewer number of women compared to men is one of the considerations taken into account during transfers and they are found privileged in this regard.

Professionals with access to power have access to other benefits in the ministry, for example favorable placement. However, male professionals hold powerful positions in the ministry. As a result, the women in the ministry do not have access to these positions. These positions are important because they provide access to power and authority. Women may have access to these positions, but outside Dhaka, where challenges such as infrastructure, long working hours, social taboos, and organizational support are limited. Because of such disadvantages women accept the strategy of forgoing some placements.

As flexible work arrangements are not formally practiced among the Ministry of Public Administration (MoPA) professionals, women in particular adapt the informal flexibility of maintaining good relations with their colleagues and supervisors. The volume of work creates extra pressure on professionals that permeates family activities. Both practical and unseen reasons are found to discriminate professionals in terms of promotion. Because of informal reasons for promotion, it is easy to discriminate. Professionals’ connections with political parties escalate this problem. This practice leads to mistrust among professionals, keeps them without work, and to a large extent results in loss of public money. This culture affects the professional’s personal and family life and performance at work.

As almost all male professionals are the only breadwinners in their families, they struggle to manage their family with one person’s income, which creates the necessity of adapting the coping strategy of earning money from formal and informal sources. On the other hand, women professionals do not feel financial scarcity as their husbands are generally service holders. However, the financial scarcity forces professionals to restrict their movement in the public domain and in social gathering.

The coping strategies followed by professionals vary from men to women. They adapt good relations with colleagues, use the power of their spouses, informal flexibility, appoint domestic servants, get help from family members, financial help from general provident fund loans from friends or other sources, transfer to desired places or avoid uncomfortable transfers, live in low-rent housing or eat and save less money from their salary, avoiding training or obtain foreign training as key coping strategies.