魏廷諭
Since career women first appeared in our society, the tension between
being successful superwomen and being responsible housewives and
mothers, especially rearing young children, has never been resolved.
However, recently a new law was set up in Taiwan which allows career
women to apply for maternity leaves and other benefits in relation to
child rearing, in order to take better care of both themselves and their
babies. The tension that has existed for so long has been largely
resolved by the new law.
In ancient times, Chinese women were not allowed to appear in public
often. If a girl was born to a rich family, she was forbidden to appear
in public except for some special occasions, so she only stayed in her
room doing activities such as reading or needlepoint. Parents thought
that staying home was a method to keep the girl』s reputation. Later on,
when the girl married someone and bore children, instead of working hard
outside, she would stay home and take good care of her children,
especially if she had sons. In contrast, a poor girl who married and
bore children might be required to not only rear the babies but also
help her husband work in a rice field or take care of some small
business. To be considered a 「good wife,」 she had to take full
responsibility, both for the children and the family. However, all she
did was for her husband and 「his」 family; rarely did she have the
opportunity to pursue her own career.
Fortunately, nowadays, modern women have become more consciousness of
themselves and have started to pursue their own careers. They want to
be the master of their own lives; they like challenges instead of being
cost-free servants to their children and husbands. However, most women
soon find out that it is hard to work and raise families at the same
time. After all, traditionally, taking care of children and the family
is women』s job. Under the circumstances, women need more legal rights
to support them in the pursuit of careers. The new law, the Gender
Equality Labor Law, might be the solution to the unfairness.
Under the new law, female workers can apply for longer maternity leaves
and have room for breast-feeding their babies. Public institutions and
big business companies should offer the service of caring for young
children. The law is definitely beneficial for both career women and
their babies. However, after the new law was set up, many employers
started to worry about their businesses. Not only do they run the risk
of losing productivity because of the leave but also have to prepare so
many troubling things for female workers who have babies. Even a female
manager of Hua-Nan Bank, Liao Ming-chou, said,」 We would hire fewer
women in the future.」
In my opinion, it is true that if a worker is able to apply for so many
holidays and still hold his job, the boss will feel very inconvenient.
However, female workers should have these rights. Who said that women
must take the responsibility of caring for children while men don』t have
to? How can men go to work without worrying about house chores and
rearing children, while women cannot? Why do women need to endure the
unfairness when they look for jobs? Nowadays, workers should be
evaluated by their abilities instead of by their gender. The new law
provides better legal rights for women to pursue careers; however, what
women really need is respect from society, regardless of whether they
decide to focus on family or career. Women should be equal with men,
whether in law or in heart.