CHAPTER ONE
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The problems of male secretary have often been a topic for discussion. Studies have shown that for a long time, the topical average male person employed in the secretarial profession has been assumed to be in a field meant for the female gender. This problem become more compounded as the society generally holds this view. Even authors and publishers of secretarial books deficit every examples of a secretary with a female photograph. One field that may well appeal to he college woman is the secretarial profession. No other profession offer to woman so wide variety of occupational areas other to than secretarial profession.
Bollo (1994) stated that, this assumption has over the years been proved wrong as we now have women in almost every field that can be through of.
Many business executive both in the private and public sectors of the economy particularly those in higher level position identify a secretary as a capable confidential secretary who takes dictation, knows the work intimately enough to assume responsibility for the independent performance of all kinds of routine tasks, thus relieving the executive.
One way or the other, the male secretary find himself in a fix. The nature of being their own boss and not having to answer “Sir” to bosses some always and will continue to be a psychological problem. There are some exemptions to this problem that is, these men who are out for the job in spite of talks of not being man enough to stand on his feet, but those men who come out of this shell to say they are secretaries are mostly greater with empathy. As a result of this empathy, there is the tending of them getting bored of het job leading to discontentment and frustration.
Beamer (1962) stated that, looking at the public encountered by male secretaries from another perspective is their boss’s suspicion of any disloyalty, a suspicion which is easily aroused by the secretary talking to someone else about his work. The boss of someone organization do not employ men as their secretaries because they assumed they would compete with them and possibly go offer their job.
In other to reduce male suspicion of their competitors, careful separations were made at first between the work of male and female secretary. It was then discovered that women’s dexterity patience and docility made them more ideals to act as secretaries. This again added to the male secretary problem, the male secretaries complain of being over stressed. Stress as we all knows is an unhealthy hazard and this may lead to ill-heath and on the long run affect his productivity.
Today’s male secretary also acts as maid on different ways and at different stages in his carrier to different bosses, which at times make him work like an office household servant.
On the home front, the male secretaries like any other busy man who works cate to see that jobs are completed on time. In other to avoid delays in organization policies. They may find themselves in difficult situation with their wives. The fact that he might have to travel out of station for days will no doubt affect his family responsibilities. This results in nagging screening and calling of names.
Tower (1963) stated that:
I love my job, my boss is great
My office is beautiful, but I late to work
Because after road
I have another job waiting for me at home.
There is the problem of considerable low job satisfaction due to discontentment and alienation in any form resulting from lack of freedom to exercise control over his job. This mostly arises if the boss is a female and the male secretary has the parochial belief that the male is always the boss.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS
In the past, the secretarial profession has been mainly a female dominated field, which had not been penetrated early by men. Men started taking to the profession when it became sophisticated technological find more challenging venture.
The problem therefore, is to find out the reason for female domination of the profession as it was in most cases not the male first career choice.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of the study is to find out ways and means of solving the problems which affected the male secretaries in profession with particular reference to office technology and management.
1. To find out female secretaries are more attracted to customers that the male secretaries in an organization.
2. To find out whether female secretaries are also submissive to work when compared to male secretaries.
3. To find out some of the male secretaries that never have the intention of reading the course are greeted with empathy.
4. To know whether many are given time for male secretaries to exercise freedom in doing their jobs.
5. To find out of most of the male secretaries doesn’t devote their time in doing job.