Abstract
Although social support provided by supervisors has been recognized as one of the key factors that help employees utilize work-life balance (WLB) programs in their organization and maintain balance between their work and life, the factors that influence supervisors’ willingness to support their subordinates have not yet been sufficiently examined. This article investigated whether supervisors’ positive or negative perceptions of WLB policy and their subordinate’s past performance influenced supervisors’ willingness to accept their subordinates’ work arrangement requests, using data collected from 2,230 Japanese workers. The results showed that when supervisors had a positive perception of WLB policy, it positively influenced their acceptance of their subordinates’ requests, while negative perceptions had a negative impact on acceptance. Further, regardless of what was requested, high performance subordinates received more favorable treatment from their supervisors than low performance counterparts did.
Highlights
Social support provided by supervisors has been recognized as one of the key factors that help employees utilize work-life balance (WLB) programs in their organization and maintain balance between their work and life, the factors that influence supervisors’ willingness to support their subordinates have not yet been sufficiently examined
The results showed that when supervisors had a positive perception of WLB policy, it positively influenced their acceptance of their subordinates’ requests, while negative perceptions had a negative impact on acceptance
Using a survey, Matsuda, Kokumai, and Wang (2009) found that conservative attitude or atmosphere at the workplace to WLB programs and activities, management does not appreciate the value of WLB, and male employees do not appreciate the value of WLB inhibited WLB implementation, rather than a flaw in the WLB policy of the organization
Summary
Social support provided by supervisors has been recognized as one of the key factors that help employees utilize work-life balance (WLB) programs in their organization and maintain balance between their work and life, the factors that influence supervisors’ willingness to support their subordinates have not yet been sufficiently examined. De Villiers and Kotze’s (2003) qualitative study found that the most significant work-life conflicts arise from complex workplace issues, such as management change, supervisory and technical competences, leadership, roles and accountabilities, and culture They said that, “the results suggest that leadership, supervisor/manager recognition and support for individuals and their needs, influence work-life balance” This article focused on two factors of supervisors’ willingness to support subordinates It focused on the effects of supervisors’ perceptions of WLB policy and subordinates’ past performance on supervisors’ willingness to accept requests from subordinates, regarding changes in their work arrangement due to family matters
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