A Study Of The Sociological Factors Affecting Professional Secretarial Career In Nigeria

 

In this part of the world a careful observer would discover that what we refer to as sociological factors affecting professional secretarial career in Nigeria has always been mistaken. The management of some entrepreneur and  institution management has failed in their duties of providing these basic needs to their secretaries.

The world “secretary” has been defined by A.S Hornby, in the Advanced Learners Dictionary, as an employee or an official who deals with correspondences, keeps records, makes arrangements, appointment and other business affairs of the firm, society or club.

The Lexicon Webster dictionary, an encyclopedic  edition, defines secretary as one entrusted with secrets, one who caries on another’s correspondences and performs other routine task; an officer of an organization or business who keeps records and assists in major decisions, a government officer whose business is to superintendent and manage the affairs of a particular department.

Office is of paramount importance to the organization since it is a decision making centre and it is through the office functions that the organization achieves its goals.

The importance of a secretary in any organization is not to be over –emphasized but the profession has been misconstrued due to small ill informed masses. M. blight (1983) in duties of a professional secretary commented on this. He said that, this argument is, in part, attributed to the inability of employers to clearly specify job description for professional secretaries. Again, B.O.Ekong (1984) in his article titled problems in professional secretarial career’ hold that, ‘some employers believe that the secretarial school merely teachers shorthand and typewriting to its  graduates therefore, did not see the reason as to the substance of making them beneficiaries of some service conditions and promotional benefit, with their counterparts in other fields. This could be the reason why a secretary’s opinion is always neglected in decision making. Although he has been employed by the boss for his assistance, but his opinion is not always appreciated.

He attends meeting just as minutes jotter and reporter, his opinion is not being sought for in decision making. L.N.Mbaga (1984) in contemporary views, said that, “a professional secretaries are held as drop outs forced by self –induced disappointments and frustrations to specialize in typewriting and shorthand”.

Due to this misconception of the profession, less importance is attached to the secretary position. The secretary in an organization, is seen by other members of the organization, as merely an appendage. In most cases, he is regarded as a shorthand/typist by a majority of people. People well informed who are supposed to acknowledge the importance of secretaries in the society and consequently he feels slighted.

Some employers seen not to know the difference between the work of an office messenger and that of a secretary. Some secretaries are expected to do the boss’s wife or other co-workers and consequently this affects her psychologically. This was confirmed by an interview conducted by Nicola Tyre (1984), when a lady secretary said that at one time she had two houses to run as well as her normal job. She went on complaining that she was used as a domestic skinny, doing her boss’s personal errand running such as buying a present for the wife and her weekly shopping.

These type of problems facing secretaries in the job tend to affect their productivity and stability, even those with genuine interest for the career one scared away and consequently secretaries change of occupation becomes more, than in other fields like engineering, business administration etc.

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