Introduction
Proposition
Research has established that it is very crucial to bring balance in work life, which is considered the most important attribute in an organization after the level of wages prevailing in the organization.
It is also known through research that almost 25 percent of employees in organizational settings suffer from high levels of conflict between family and work, primarily because of strains pertaining to caring and interferences between work and family. In fact, if the overload of work is considered, almost 60 percent workers suffer from such conflicts. It thus becomes imperative to examine and come to meaningful conclusions about what strategies can be adopted in removing the large extent of worker suffering in this regard.
Employees that experience positive work-life balance have been known to work 21 percent better than those that are deprived of the same. Rather, proactive organizations understand that the best they can do for their workers is to provide them with the gift of time. Most employees prefer a flexible time schedule in order to avoid work life conflicts.
Additionally, many firms are known to focus upon the actual provision of work life services but it is evident that workforce productivity can be enhanced if they are reassured of the availability of specific services whereby the options in the context of work life balancing proves to be more significant in improving the efforts of workers as compared to situations in which their specific work consumptions are measured.
Firms that are able to effectively check the differences in the context of work life conflicts are able to lure better employees as also motivate them in remaining with the company for better careers.
As per research conducted by Yasbek (2004) concerning work -life balance and the correlation between the productivity of employees, stress was found to be a major factor that restricted work performance.
In keeping with such trends a great deal of research has been done to find ways to help workers in getting relieved of stress in the working environment. Several Institutions such as the Corporate Executive Board (CEB) have associated themselves with companies that have been making efforts to resolve issues relating to work-life conflict (Sekaran, 2006).
It has also been found that when the numbers of employees in any organization are reduced the burden of work-life conflict is lessened and they can perform better because absenteeism and low turnover are avoided that further lead to higher production, fulfillment and commitment towards the ideas and objectives of the company or the organization.
More importantly, if work-life conflicts are reduced amongst employees, their living standards in terms of health and financial dimensions can be improved tremendously. It is therefore important for any organization to implement specific policies and frameworks aimed at eliminating work-life conflicts at the workplace.
Different employees are affected differently; because of coping strategies that have been enforced in different organizational settings, thus adversely impacting the productivity of the organization (Pfeifer, 2009). In the light of the available literature this paper will examine the problem pertaining to the suffering of workers in the context of work life conflicts and what strategies can be adopted by organizations in diminishing the high level of dissatisfaction amongst workers.
Literature review
Most employees tend to shift their employment due to stresses they get from their bosses; this problem may be witnessed for instance during the employment period certain terms are not reached as desired and as it is required by the qualification of the employee thus affecting their health and performance (Kodama, 2007)
Employees in spite of their requirements in performance are affected by the shifting work demands experienced during performance such occasions are for instance the signing of performance contracts stating the amount and the duration of work. This situations, curtail their commitment towards their family and work.
The challenges pertaining to work life conflicts in society cannot be made to disappear but they have to be identified and discussed in the context of the emerging trends. If the organization is aware of such trends it can educate itself as well as workers in achieving positive results.
The issue of work life conflict and work life balance is now commanding a great deal of attention amongst corporate and academic circles and new research is being consistently carried out in this regard. For instance a 2005 research study revealed that workers are mostly occupied with work even when they are not at work and while they are with their families or loved ones they often have to undergo experiences whereby they are not meaningfully and emotionally engaged in a family environment (Ezzedeen and Swiercz, 2005).
It has been rightly pointed out by Ezedeen and Swiercz (2005) that the present day environment has created an intellectually fluid and knowledgeable structure whereby people tend to be over worked and are made to think about their work most of the time. They assert that for many people work is assumed as being cognitively intrusive.
This implies that the work life balance now relates mainly not only to people being unable to find physical time to do what they wish to do but they are also not able to get the cognitive space that is essential for processing, organizing and responding to the emotional demands in a society that is increasingly becoming more and more complex.
Work life conflicts result in lesser job satisfaction, lesser happiness levels, greater prevalence of conflicts at the work place and higher frequency of burnout. Further, research findings have also revealed that the roles of personality, family status, age and gender are fast changing because of such circumstances.
The experiences of workers in regard to intrusions are much greater than personality and demographical patterns than impacting the organizational, cultural and work related circumstances of the organization. It is not surprising that the numbers of stress related disability claims by workers in the US has increased dramatically.
Almost 75 percent of the visits to physicians are related to stress, which has enhanced the financial burden to businesses to almost $300 billion annually (Swift, 2003). Steven Sauter, who is presently the Head of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health in the US has stated that the work place is now the most important center of stressful situations amongst people (Parasuraman and Greenhaus, 2005).
Michael Feurstein of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences has reported that his institution has been receiving a much enhanced work related neuro-skelital complexities arising from combinations of ergonomic stress issues (Friedman and Greenhaus, 2004).
It is thus clear that complications resulting from stress have led to many apprehensions for both employees and employers. Stress symptoms are created by way of psychological factors as well as by psychologically created work situations.
Consistent prevalence of stress often results in the prevalence of sexual health and heart related complications, back aches, stiff muscles, frequent head aches and weaker immune systems, Such situations often make workers to be unable to cope with exhaustion, sense of insecurity, jumpiness, feelings of irritation and concentration inability.
High stress levels often lead people to develop habits of alcohol, smoking and binge eating. In asserting the gravity of the issues relating to work place conflicts, James Campbell, a faculty of organizational studies at the University of Texas has confirmed that the average term of presidents and CEOs in organizations during the last ten years has reduced from six to four and a half years (Parasuraman and Greenhaus, 2005).
It is now widely acknowledged that more important than working hard is to work seventy hours a week in order for people to succeed in work related areas. The little time that is left has to be divided amongst sleep, family, kids and other relationships.
The increase in working hours during the last two decades that has been markedly observed in most work settings in developed countries implies that lesser time is available for friends, community and family as also for activities that a person may be enjoying in the context of enhancing his spiritual and personal abilities.
In effect, when workers are made to work excessive hours, firms have to bear the adverse consequences (Fineman, 2003). Many employers hold that workers must take initiatives themselves in reducing their own stress levels by making their lives simple and by making their economic health better.
However, most experts feel that the responsibility of improving and caring for workers’ health, rests with organizations. According to Orioli (2005), conventional stress management programs place the responsibility of stress reduction upon workers instead of the organization, but this is not correct because however healthy a worker may be at the time of joining a firm, if the working systems are dysfunctional, they will eventually burn him out (Reynolds, 2005).
Communication is an important element in dealing with work life conflicts. Although many organizations provide an excellent combination of work life benefits, positive business results are not always achieved because workers may not understand the interventions or have knowledge about them. In this context it is important for management of organizations to consider the following four crucial issues:
- Does the organizational culture of the firm in question give encouragement to work life-balance.?
- Does the management of the company in question proactively encourage work life-balance?
- Do the senior managers and executives have knowledge about the effect of work life balance on employees at different levels in the organization?
- Whether all workers are aware of and whether they understand the company’s work life programs.
In a study conducted by Thompson, Beauvais and Lyness (2005) it was concluded that workers strongly believed that it was extremely important to balance work with personal and family life. This aspect was considered by them as a major factor in deciding whether to continue working with their employer.
Researchers have also found that there is considerable cost to firms in the context of the rate at which employees stick to their jobs and the relative loss in terms of loss of talent. In fact work life programs provide solutions by way of retention issues.
Research has indicated that organizational commitments towards resolving work life conflicts are closely aligned with productivity and motivation of employees. Gottlieg, Kelloway and Barham (2002) conducted studies about stress, well being and work and found that 50 percent of women and 45 percent of women would forego promotion opportunities if they left them with lesser time for family and personal activities.
Synthesis
An analysis of the available literature reveals that in order to reduce work life conflicts, a firm that already has work life benefits in place must take initiatives in re-communicating them to workers so that they understand how the available benefits can provide a meaningful basis to manage their work and family conflicts.
Additionally, human resources strategies have to be developed that are explicitly related with the organization’s objective of demonstrating that the organization is serious in meeting employee needs. Work life balance strategies can be supported in the following ways:
- Making reviews of the H R strategies to ascertain if they are in keeping with the company’s goals and objectives concerning the resolution of work-life conflicts.
- Ascertain through questionnaires and focus groups the opinion of workers about work life balance.
- Aligning work life initiatives with H R strategies
- Creating work life awards programs by providing non cash benefits that are well aligned with corporate objectives.
- Taking initiatives to allow for the measurement of work life benefits.
The latest addition to the literature in the context of work-life conflict is Total Life Planning, which is a new concept in the context of work life balance that assists workers in examining the significant issues relating to their personal and professional lives and to recognize how they can meaningfully make the best of such opportunities.
The main purpose of motivating workers is to consider their lives from the complete perspective and to assess their respective relationships in terms of spiritual capabilities, career and physical and psychological circumstances. Such arrangements allow workers to make meaningful judgment in terms of the available options to bring balance in their life and hence to create an individual life plan that incorporates goal setting with efficient change components for all workers (Traynor, 2006).
The concept of total life planning is representative of a paradigm shift in modern societies. It brings about enhanced worker energy, increased productivity and enthusiasm at work. Total life planning can be implemented in combination with facilities such as disability, life and health insurance policies. However there are certain private issues concerned with total life planning that may dissuade many employers from employing the concept entirely.
The challenges pertaining to work life conflict are achieving greater significance in terms of employee and employer consciousness. Society is now quite fast paced and human resource personnel have started searching for better options to impact the bottom lines of firms more positively in addition to improving employee morale and retention.
This has become an important priority to have workers with better organizational knowledge and to keep up with the fast changing work place patterns.
Work place conflicts are mainly the result of specific factors that relate to global competitiveness, personal and family values and the large proportion of the population that is going to become old soon. Human resources personnel are now better placed to meet these challenges and help their organizations in capitalizing under such circumstances by focusing upon work and life initiatives to achieve competitive advantages in the market place.
It is important to ascertain the reasons that affect several employees and how work-life conflicts have affected the performance of these workers in relation to productivity and balance of the organization (Richard, 2006) The solution to these problems is achieved if the work-life balance program are aimed at balancing the work load provided by the employees with the task that the organization have put in place (Kodama, 2007).
Therefore, coming up with healthy variables will help employees raise their performance levels so that they naturally develop positive attitudes in the context of their work. These variables are aimed at determining employee’s performance and the organization’s productivity. For instance, dependent and independent variables can be approached so that proper manipulation can be realized and proper balance met.
Modern societies are now primarily characterized with conflicting commitments and responsibilities and work life balance is increasingly becoming a predominant issue in working environments. The ideal situation in terms of work life balance is when there is an equilibrium whereby the expectations from both job and family life are equal.
Work life conflicts are prevalent not only in the US but they have become a global phenomenon as employees now want to have control and more freedom in the context of their discretion to lead a personal life with friends and family. In effect, work life conflicts are varied and are characterized in different ways with different people in view of the different meanings attached to different incidents and happenings in an organizational setting.
HR professionals in organizations need to understand that the present patterns include giving broader meanings to work-life connotations and workers need organizational support in specific areas such as life balance, flexible working hours and quality of life. The hectic lifestyle in working environments warrant the checking of the push and pull factors amongst family and work responsibilities.
Research design
Several methods of design have been used such as quantitative research design that is aimed at checking which organizations have put in place work-life balance programs aimed at improving the employee’s performance.
This method is used to check the effects of independent variables on the dependent variables i.e. the outcome is measured in the context of issues that affect employee’s performance and productivity in the organization (Higgins et al, 2006).
This design is useful in determining the relationship between variables and work-life balance initiatives. This aspect therefore checks the performance of the employees and the productivity of the organization.
Research methods
The research design will be conducted in a manner that work-life conflicts are checked while comparing employee perceptions about the work load that an organization imposes on its employees. Therefore, in this context several participants from different companies will be included in the sampling exercise in highlighting their expectations from the organization and in outlining the kind of work strategy that they feel is most appropriate (Bardoel, 2006).
Upon undertaking this exercise, information will be recorded that can be used to determine the different behavioral issues that have any bearing on work-life conflicts and why many employees choose to neglect their duties. The survey will also allow the research to determine why organizations are perceived as being the source of all these problems.
In keeping with the research design, code categories will be developed in terms of quantification and coding. All the collected information will be compiled and identified and the different items will be divided into compact sets of variables for easy analysis. For instance, if there are ten questions in the survey relating to job satisfaction, variables will be created that are indicative of an average pertaining to the ten questions.
Levels appropriate to the study will be chosen so that detailed sections can be combined into bigger groups. It is also possible to develop a code system that gives attributes, descriptive labels and names of different variables, which can be used in reducing the complex character of data and for summarizing the same.
The data will be used by displaying the distribution of characteristics of single variables and ascertaining their main tendencies. Dispersion of the single variables will be determined in terms of variability so that the association amongst two or more variables can be measured.
The compiled statistics will be used in determining the extent of problems in relation to the chosen population. The hypothesis that the extent of work-life conflict needs to be resolved by adopting organizational strategies will be highlighted in the light of the outcomes from the survey.
In order to have precise results, inferential statistics will be used in generalizing the findings from samples to bigger populations from where the samples were selected. Depending upon the nature of the collected information it will be considered if it is worthwhile to make use of multivariate analysis so that two or more variables can be analyzed simultaneously. Nevertheless these are powerful means of carrying out a diagnosis of the complex research problem.
Further, the advanced multivariate analysis will allow a time series analysis, which is the study of different procedures that occur over time. Path analysis will allow the examination of the data graphically in terms of the causal relationship between different sets of variables.
Factor analysis allows ascertaining the general dimension that is revealed by the collected actual variables. Such processes have significant statistical importance because the findings are not based upon random chance. Moreover the data provides strong, meaningful and important information.
Participants and sampling plan
The respondents for the survey will be chosen from two varied organizations with different functions and nature of work environment. These employees will include both men and women from different age groups and different work profiles. It is known in this context that age and position at work are important determinants of employee satisfaction (Bardoel, 2006).
The information collected will be helpful in determining why employees get involved in work-life conflicts (Cohen, et al, 2007).The survey will strictly target people employed for more than one year in the given organization. A number of sampling methods will be used to obtain correct and authentic information (Dale-Olsen, 2009).
The methodology will include criteria in ascertaining that workers that are open about expressing their concerns in the context of work-life conflicts are included in the sample. The methodology will follow two main measures to collect the information. These procedures will be categorized under sampling designs i.e. simple random sampling process, systematic sampling and stratified sampling (Kodama, 2007).
Measurement instruments
The following measuring instruments will be used:
- The probability sampling method will be used as a review for the sample work presented earlier and a bar graph will represent details collected about employees (Bardoel, 2006)
- The other method will be the randomization whereby different techniques based on subjects and experiments will be assigned to control the group (Sekaran, 2006). In this method a data table representing information will be presented.
- Matching method will be used whereby pairs of different subjects will be matched in considering the similarities between one or more employees (Pfeifer, 2009). The following data will be represented:
- The quarters represent the information that 90 employees gave about the reasons why work-life conflicts are affecting their productivity in production.
- The information provided at the key dialog box represents the measurement instruments that were used during data conduction.
Procedures
Different procedures will be used while collecting data. For instance, head count will be made whereby people that have been employed for more than 1 year will be separated from those that have been employed for more than 3 years. Payment and wage levels will also be examined in terms of differences amongst senior and junior employees.
Results
Evaluation research is imperative in this kind of research and proves to be appropriate for studies that are planned for conducting specific social interventions. The objective is to ascertain if social interventions in the context of work life conflicts have produced the desired results because in such situations outcomes are not always received positively.
The measurement in this kind of research involves key variables whereby there has to be agreement on definitions and on the methods of measurement. The different aspects in regard to the experiments that can impact the research outcomes will be considered in terms of the experimental stimulus pertaining to the varied interventions that have been used.
The demographic variables and those that define the population being considered have to be evaluated in the context of existing and new measures. Eventually the idea is to operationalize the successes and failures. In this context, evaluation research designs pertain to groupings that can experiment and assert their authority over experimental designs especially in the context of time series designs that do not have randomly assigned characteristics amongst respondents.
The results of the methodology will include the responses of respondents that are not belonging to the same characteristic groups and that do not have the same design parameters.. Qualitative evaluation will also be done of the data to determine the realistic patterns of work life conflicts and their resolution as perceived amongst the sample population.
It is important to analyze the ethical issues in the context of work life conflicts because social interventions that are being considered could entail such problems. In effect, many times evaluation could become a mask for unethical behaviors. The researcher will be careful in concluding the different parameters from the available data because the implication from the available data may not correctly reflect the results in view of the inability of researchers to understand ethical issues.
Moreover there are always vested interests in most programs and results could sometimes challenge deeply held beliefs. Social indicators of research allow researchers to understand the broader perceptions of social procedures and more refined indicators are being developed that allow determining the most significant monitoring of social life. The available data from this research will enable the discovering of relationships amongst different variables in society.
The qualitative data analysis will provide a descriptive purpose and will be used to find explanatory trends as characterized by the collected data. It will allow for linking of theory, analysis and data collection of the sampling outcomes. Qualitative data analysis will be very useful in ascertaining the outcomes as it is an effective means to examine data without converting it into numerical formats.
The pattern of work life conflicts and their solutions amongst the sample population will be then determined through different patterns that will comprise of frequencies of occurrence, magnitude, structures, processes, causes and consequences. This is important because the research needs to ascertain how often something occurs, at what level it occurs and what are the different kinds of structures.
The data will allow the research team to determine if the structures are orderly so that the causes are known in terms of the specific groups, situation and environment. Above all it is required to know of the consequences in both the short and long terms.
In using the grounded theory method, different stages of constant comparison methods will be used. Happenings that are relevant in being comparable to diverse series and qualities will be compared and the different samples and their elements will be amalgamated by restricting the same with reference to the applicable theories.
Discussion
The challenges pertaining to work life conflicts in society cannot be made to disappear but they have to be identified and discussed in the context of the emerging trends. If the organization is aware of such trends it can educate itself as well as workers in achieving positive results.
The issue of work life conflict and work life balance is now commanding a great deal of attention amongst corporate and academic circles and new research is being consistently carried out in this regard. Firms that can successfully lessen the gaps in the context of work life conflicts stand better chances of retaining and attracting larger number of employees.
The challenges pertaining to work life conflict are achieving greater significance in terms of employee and employer consciousness. Society is now quite fast paced and human resource personnel have started searching for better options to impact the bottom lines of firms more positively in addition to improving employee morale and retention
From the employers’ perspective, work life conflicts imply the creation of a supportive organizational culture so that workers can efficiently focus on their jobs. If the organization can provide family friendly benefits that allow workers the flexibility to take care of their family and personal responsibilities while not making compromise in the work front, most of the conflicts can be resolved.
The organization can introduce processes and policies with the objective of allowing workers to complete their jobs while having the flexibility to fulfill their family responsibilities. The extent to which the organization confirms with and gives value to family obligations of workers will greatly determine the quality of partnership amongst management and workers.
There is now an emerging pattern whereby workers in most developed nations are not willing to ignore or put aside family lives for the sake of work. Over the past few years, most Americans have started changing direction from being willing to work extra hours at the workplace to making attempts to effectively manage the problems arising from modern living.
Moreover the events emanating from the 9/11 attack have made many people to reconsider their priorities in the context of work and family life. As a result more and more people are searching for opportunities that are flexible in allowing a rewarding family and personal life. Such patterns have also altered management philosophy that had so far held that workers should put work related issues ahead of family and personal life.
Many firms offer employee assistance programs that are very effective for employees under stress. Such interventions provide for positively dealing with workers that are addicted to drugs and alcohol in addition to counseling services in addressing marriage and family issues.
Moreover, in keeping with the patterns of increasing stress levels in society, work life professionals have emerged that develop wellness programs and resolve work-life conflicts at the work place in attempts to promote a healthier balance amongst family, personal and work life. In effect work-life programs are representative of solutions that are mostly untapped at the work place and have the ability to meaningfully deal with stressful working conditions.
From the organization’s perspective the return on investment is a major concern that strongly impacts the extent of work-life initiatives undertaken by it. Firms have increasingly begun to recognize now that workers’ personal and family life has a strong bearing upon their performance at jobs and thus there is a strong reason to encourage integration of family and work.
While some organizations consider that work-life balance and diversity are two different things, the case for businesses to take care of diversity is in larger part almost the same as work-life balance. By encouraging a favorable diversity environment and a positive work life balance environment the firm can encourage employees to be more responsible that further reduces the instances of unethical behavior by workers.
Additionally such characteristics allow the firm to be free from anti social instances such as worker protests and employee indiscipline and further help the firm in enhancing productivity and profitability. An important complexity arising from work-life conflicts is the deterioration in family relationships and the resulting impacts on workers’ performance levels.
There is increasing diversity in family structures in the present century, which makes it all the more important for managements to realize the significance of the interface of family and work relationships. Researchers have concluded that some sections of the work force could be subjected to unique pressures relating to work and family and still do not have adequate resources to fall back on in resolving such adversities.
Most studies in this regard have emphasized on workers that are married and live with partners and children. The case of workers that are single earning mothers or fathers and of those that are single and without children has not been researched exhaustively. Such workers have to suffer a great deal on account of work related pressures and conflicts.
It is thus imperative for organizations to consider the changing nature of what comprises families in today’s societies. Strategies and policies must be devised to positively impact productivity, morale of workers, satisfaction at work and employee retention so that work-life conflicts are reduced and workers work in a favorable and stress free environment.
It is acknowledged by analysts that the USA is significantly behind other developed nations in terms of family oriented work place policies relating to paid sick leaves and maternity leave.
The laws in America relating to equal opportunities are well provided but there is inadequate protection at working places and lack of consideration in the context of protecting family values for many Americans. Most Americans share this belief and experts consider that such attitudes are clearly indicative of the present working environment in the country.
The US is not keeping abreast with the family oriented and workplace conflict resolution policies that are being followed by other developed nations. For instance, the US is amongst the few nations that do not provide for guaranteed paid maternity leave to workers.
Although fathers are given paid paternity leave in a number of countries the US does not provide for the same. Many countries provide for the right of working women to breast feed but there is no legal provision in the US for the same. Such workplace conflicts add to the already delicate employee worker relationships that have been creating an unproductive environment in US industrial establishments.
Federal law in the US does not provide for paid sick leave although a minimum of 125 nations have laws providing for the same and for setting minimum working hours per week. In the US there is no legal basis to define a maximum length of working hours per week nor is there any provision for outlining payment for overtime allowances.
It is noteworthy in this context that countries such as Norway, Denmark and Sweden provide the maximum benefits for workers in terms of leave and maternity benefits. Workers in America get a maximum of ten paid holidays every years as against 25 in the UK and 30 in Germany. The extent of work-life conflicts in America is much more in the US, which is evident from the fact that Americans work twelve weeks extra as compared to workers in most European nations.
The Working Time Regulation in Europe provides for a maximum of 48 hours of work in a week while many nations have chosen lesser working hours in keeping with the need to allow workers greater flexibility in dealing with their personal affairs. Finland had provided for 30 hours per week and France had legislated for a 35 hour working week.
However many countries located in the south of Europe have been known to have excessive instances of work-life conflicts. In Greece and Croatia almost 75 percent of workers confirmed that working long hours at the job leaves them with little time to take care of their families or to involve in other activities of their interest.
The UK has recently allowed workers that have children of age below six years to request for flexibility in working hours and employers have to consider them as far as the business is not directly impacted in adverse ways. The extent of disgruntlement in regard to work life conflicts is evident from the fact that workers in the UK had polled that they have greater value for working hour flexibility than higher wages.
General Summary and Conclusions
The challenges pertaining to work life conflict are achieving greater significance in terms of employee and employer consciousness. Society is now quite fast paced and human resource personnel have started searching for better options to impact the bottom lines of firms more positively in addition to improving employee morale and retention.
This has become an important priority to have workers with better organizational knowledge and to keep up with the fast changing work place patterns. The major factors that lead to work place conflicts mainly relate to challenges that emerge from global competitiveness, personal and family values and the large number of people that will soon retire in creating a larger dependency on organizations and the public at large.
Human resources personnel are now better placed to meet these challenges and help their organizations in capitalizing on such circumstances by focusing upon work and life initiatives to achieve competitive advantages in the market place.
Additionally many firms are known to focus upon the actual provision of work life services but it is evident that workforce productivity can be enhanced if they are reassured of the availability of specific services whereby the options in the context of work life balancing proves to be more significant in improving the efforts of workers as compared to situations in which their specific work consumptions are measured.
Firms that can efficiently deal with and lessen the gaps in the context of work life conflicts, stand better chances of achieving higher levels success in retaining and attracting people to join as employees.
It is very true that work-life conflicts can be effectively resolved by introducing work-life programs that have the potential to considerably enhance employee morale, conserve organizational knowledge and reduce absenteeism more specifically during times of difficult economic situations.
In the present global environment as firms make attempts towards reducing costs, the management of companies stand to gain by recognizing the crucial issues relating to work-life conflicts and work-life balance and taking remedial initiatives in the context of championing work-life programs within their organizations.
All sections of employees that range from single mothers and fathers, generation X and Y workers that have immense value for their personal aspirations, couples that struggle to cope and meet the pressure of double career marriages and individuals whose friends or family members are required to serve the country families; or even organizations that are gradually losing talent because of negative employee retention; all stand to gain by adopting measures to reduce work-life conflicts amongst workers.
In order to reduce work life conflicts, a firm that already has work life benefits in place must take initiatives in re-communicating them to workers so that they understand how the available benefits can provide a meaningful basis to manage their work and family conflicts.
Additionally, human resources strategies have to be developed that are explicitly related with the firm’s objectives in demonstrating that the organization is serious about allowing employees to have a satisfying working environment in terms of job satisfaction and time availability for family involvements.
When there is high level of job satisfaction and a favorable work-life balance, organizations promote ethical behavior amongst employees and stand to gain in enhancing productivity and profitability in addition to creating a positive working environment. It is therefore important for all organizations to employ special policies and frame work aimed at eliminating work-life conflicts at the workplace by creating a favorable working environment that creates a win-win situation for all parties.
Apart from all these problems different employees are affected differently; it may be due to coping strategies that have been put through by different companies, thus leading to affecting the productivity of the organization
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