Article: FD Beachhead from Women24
Image: Getty

Money does seem to pave the path to equality when it comes to women. This is according to the 2008 Women24.com Female Nation Survey – which polled 8 400 women and was released today – which shows that the lives of South African women across different race groups are increasingly similar once they earn a more affluent salary.

Women24.com – South Africa's largest women's website – polled a cross-section of women in the 2008 Female Nation Survey to seek their views on money, career, sex, family – and everything else in between.

The sample was weighted to provide a representative sample of three million urban South African women, over 20 years of age earning R2 500 or more per month.

How do more affluent women's lives compare?

A closer examination of the results of Black, White, Coloured and Indian/Asian urban women earning over R16 000 a month revealed that they live similar lives; not only do most of them work, but the majority are the main breadwinners (B: 76%, W: 62%, C: 67%) and all have shockingly high levels of debt (B: 91%, W: 74%, C: 88%, I/A: 80%).

There are some notable differences however. Black women are the least likely to ever have been married with 42% never having tied the knot, whereas over half of the other groups are married.

"Are affluent Black women intimidating their suitors, or does the institution of marriage no longer hold value to them since they can support themselves and their families?", asks Sam Wilson, Editor-in-Chief of Women24.com.

Affluent Black women seem to have a substantially stronger body image than their sisters, with 19% being very happy with their bodies, as compared to less than 7% in other groups.

Sadly though, Black women continue to make greater sacrifices. 80% of women who live away from their children are Black, and 13% of Black new mothers live away from their babies, as opposed to only 3% of White new moms.

And that most valued work commodity, flexibility, also remains least available even to more affluent Black and Coloured women; only 1% of them are work from home, while 8% of White women work from home.

Breaking the mould

The picture painted by the survey reveals that South African women have shrugged off Victorian notions of propriety; 1 in 3 never-married women have had a least one biological child.

Furthermore, white picket fences and nuclear families are increasingly rare; 1 in 10 married women live alone (and that excludes women who are separated), 1 in 5 have at least one step-child, and 1 in 14 have one adopted child.

Who is happiest?

Wilson is concerned that almost half of the women who described themselves as "frequently depressed and anxious" are primary caregivers, while the happiest of all are married child-free self-employed women. "Clearly the burden on mothers remains immense," she says.

"It is fascinating that the happiest of all women are those who are self-employed, rather than those who work part-time", says Wilson. 6% are self-employed; of whom 87% are happy with their employment status, while of the 6% who work part-time, only 54% are happy with their employment status.

Wilson believes this indicates the answer to female happiness lies in the flexibility and integration of roles that self-employment brings. "Self-employed women can choose what to do and when to do it.

Working full or part-time means women must compartmentalize their lives, and this makes them stressed. It's a rush from being Mom, to worker, to Mom to wife each day".

Sex: we don’t walk the talk

Despite the dangers associated with unprotected sex, 43 % of women never use a condom and this figure, at 70%, is even higher among married women. "Women are confusing trust with stupidity", warns Wilson.

"If you are not going to use a condom, you need to be damn sure your partner has a clean bill of health, and you both need to be regularly tested for HIV and other STDs."

While it may be a relief for some to know that most married women only have sex once a week, this drops off steeply as women age. 20% of married women aged 55-59 have not had sex in the past year and this jumps to 33% for married women aged between 60 and 64.

"I'm banking on it being their aging partners' problem", jousts Wilson. "Time to invest in some Viagra."

Get off the couch, and stop bingeing

When it comes to our health we are in denial and out of control says Wilson. Almost half of the respondents don't exercise – not even a walk around the block – and yet they would like to believe they are healthy. Only 11% of women aged 35-39 believe they are not healthy.

"The big worry around our health", says Wilson, "is bingeing." Around 1 in 5 women smoke, with 16% being habitual smokers, and 8% being social smokers. Nearly 1 in 5 women describe themselves as binge drinkers, and 36% describe themselves as 'social drinkers' (1 to 2 drinks a night). And drinking and smoking go together; 34% of social smokers binge drink, and 29% of everyday smokers binge drink.

"The results of the Female Nation Survey provide some revealing insights into the lives and challenges of South African women. It's the largest on-line survey of its nature in the country and it has grown significantly since its inception in 2006", says Wilson.

Prepared by:
FD Beachhead
Dani Cohen 021 487 9000 / 082 468 6469/ dani.cohen@fd.com
Jean Dennis 021 487 9000 / 083 500 5302 / jean.dennis@fd.com

On behalf of: Women24.com

Further comment:
Sam Wilson, Editor-in-Chief of Women24.com 084 749 9470 / editor@women24.com