Work–family conflict and job insecurity: are workers from different generations experiencing true differences?

Abstract

This paper explores the question whether workers of different generations significantly diverge in their perceptions of work–family conflict and job insecurity and implications of such differences on affective commitment and job satisfaction. Given the explorative nature of this study, we use a multi-method approach which relies on a focus group with Italian graduated students and on a field study with workers from an Italian food processing company respectively grouped in three generational cohorts: Baby Boomers, gen Xers, and Millennials. Overall, our findings demonstrate that workers belonging to different generational cohorts display divergent perceptions of work–family conflict and job insecurity. However, the effects of such perceptions on work attitudes are not directly correlated with the experienced levels of job insecurity and work–family conflict. That is, although Millennials tend to perceive a higher level of job insecurity than Baby Boomers and gen Xers, job insecurity is more likely to produce negative consequences on work attitudes among Baby Boomers and gen Xers rather than among Millennials. Notably, our findings indicate that there are no significant differences with regard to the effects of work–family conflict on affective commitment and job satisfaction among the three generational cohorts considered.