Use Of Flexible Work Arrangements Research Articles

More than employment policies? Parental leaves, flexible work and fathers’ participation in unpaid care work

ABSTRACT This article explores two policy pathways – parental leave and flexible work –as complementary policy interventions aimed at promoting gender equality in unpaid care and household work. Drawing on Canadian data from the 2021 International Familydemic Survey, we examine the relationship between fathers’ previous use of parental leave, and current use of flexible work arrangements (flextime and remote work), and their involvement in unpaid care work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings support the following three arguments: First, in numerous countries, including Canada, where socially exclusive policy designs can limit fathers’ take up of parental leave, flexible work arrangements can provide additional opportunities to increase fathering involvement beyond the early months of parenting. Second, our data indicate that unpaid care work sharing is enhanced by fathers’ parental leaves and flexible working; however, fathers who have taken parental leave report dividing a wider set of household work and care tasks with their partners. Third, although their policy designs, aims, and legislation architectures differ in Canada, we maintain that parental leaves and flexible work arrangements are both more than employment policies; they are care/work policies that enact ‘social care’ and ‘democratic care’, and support gender equality and work-family justice goals.

Reconciling Paid Work and Informal Caregiving Among Older Adults: Implications for Work Interference With Family.

Many older adults who combine paid work and informal caregiving responsibilities are often in work arrangements that differ from their preference. There is reason to believe that such work status incongruence may lead to work interference with family (WIF). In response, many governments have policies that support flexible work arrangements (FWA) to help individuals manage work and family commitments. This paper examines whether work status preferences contribute to WIF for older adults who combine work and care and whether the use of flexible work arrangements moderates this relationship. The study included 610 informal caregivers (aged 55-70 years) in paid employment who participated in either the 2018 or 2020 waves of the New Zealand Health, Work and Retirement study. Using a simple moderation analysis with demographic controls, the effects of work status preferences and FWAs on WIF were estimated. After controlling for confounds, significant main effects were found for both work status preferences and flexible work arrangements on WIF. The moderation analysis revealed that involuntary part-timers using flexible time-off arrangements reported lower levels of WIF. However, other types of flexible work arrangements did not moderate the relationship between work status preferences and WIF. These findings suggest that work status preferences can contribute to WIF, but not all types of flexible work arrangements alleviate it. Policy initiatives designed to reduce WIF for those combining work and care should consider accounting for differences in the work status preferences of older workers.

The Impact Of Flexible Work Arrangements On Work-Life Balance

Flexible work arrangements (FWAs) have become increasingly popular in recent years, allowing employees to have more control over when, where, and how they work. This trend has been driven by several factors, including technological advancements, changing workforce demographics, and the need for companies to attract and retain top talent. The impact of FWAs on work-life balance has been a topic of much discussion and research. Work-life balance refers to the ability of individuals to balance their work and personal responsibilities, and achieve a sense of harmony between the two. FWAs have the potential to positively impact work-life balance by providing employees with greater control and flexibility over their work schedules and locations. Studies have shown that employees who have access to FWAs report higher levels of job satisfaction, lower levels of work-related stress, and greater overall well-being. They also report that FWAs allow them to better manage their personal and family responsibilities, leading to a better work-life balance. Additionally, FWAs have been found to have a positive impact on productivity and employee engagement, as well as reducing absenteeism and turnover rates. However, there are also some potential drawbacks to FWAs, including the risk of increased isolation and decreased collaboration among team members. There is also a risk that employees may struggle to disconnect from work outside of traditional working hours, leading to an unhealthy work-life balance. In conclusion, while FWAs have the potential to positively impact work-life balance, they need to be implemented in a thoughtful and strategic manner to ensure that they are effective for both employees and employers. Companies should consider the unique needs of their workforce and create policies and practices that support the use of FWAs while also fostering a collaborative and connected workplace culture.

The Use of Flexible Work Arrangements: Examining Experiences of Perceived Backlash Through the Lens of Diversity

As more businesses have newly adopted or expanded flexible work arrangements (FWA) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the current study aimed to investigate whether flexibility backlash (e.g., workers’ negative perceptions of promotion opportunities and work-to-life conflict) occurs in response to the use of FWA. Moreover, we tested if perceptions of flexibility backlash vary across subgroups of employees (i.e., as a function of gender, family responsibilities, and race), as well as their intersection. Using a lagged dataset of N = 414 currently employed U.S. workers collected at three-time points during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, we found that FWA use was not significantly associated with the subsequent perception of career opportunities, and no group differences were found in this relationship. Similarly, no main effect of FWA use on work-to-life conflict was found. However, among workers with more family care responsibilities, greater FWA usage was associated with more work-to-life conflict. Further, intersectionality analyses revealed men with greater family responsibilities and men who are racial minorities perceived more work-to-life conflict as they used more FWA than their counterparts. We discuss these findings through the lens of diversity in light of the ongoing need to reduce the backlash associated with the use of FWA.

Understanding the use of Flexible Work Arrangements Among Older New Zealand Caregivers.

Flexibility in the workplace has been suggested to promote prolonged employment among older workers. This study focuses on the question of whether the use of flexible work arrangements (FWAs) differs between caregivers and non-caregivers and how potential differences can be explained. Participants were 296 carers and 1611 non-carers (aged 55-70years) who completed the 2018 Health, Work and Retirement survey and were in paid employment. Hierarchical regression was used to investigate caregiving as an independent predictor of use of FWAs after controlling for demographic and work-related variables. Results show that caregivers on average used more FWAs than non-caregivers, including flexible work hours, flexible schedules and time off. Differences in FWAs use between caregivers and non-caregivers cannot be explained by differences in socio demographic and work characteristics. The use of FWAs warrants attention in discussions about prolonged employment and reconciliation of care and work among older adults.

UNDERSTANDING THE USE OF FLEXIBLE WORK ARRANGEMENTS AMONG OLDER INFORMAL CAREGIVERS

Abstract The increasing provision of informal caregiving and the extension of working lives will result in many older workers combining paid work and informal caregiving responsibilities. Specific flexible work arrangement policies have been enacted in many countries to support working caregivers. Flexibility in the workplace has been suggested to promote prolonged employment among older workers. This study primarily focuses on the question of whether use of flexible work arrangements differs between caregivers and non-caregivers and how potential differences can be explained. Participants were 296 carers and 1611 non-carers (aged 55–70 years) who completed wave 8 of the New Zealand Health, Work and Retirement survey. The use of flexible work arrangements was analyzed based on five categories; Flexibility in number of work hours, flexible schedule, flexible place, options for time off, and other options. Hierarchical regressions were used to investigate caregiving as an independent predictor of use of flexible work arrangements after controlling for demographic and work characteristics. Results indicate that the studied informal caregivers on average used more workplace flexible arrangements than non-caregivers, both in flexible work hours, flexible schedules, and time off. The caregiver status difference in use of the three significant categories of flexible work arrangements can be explained by differences in socio-demographic and work characteristics. This difference in use of FWAs among older caregivers and non-caregivers warrants attention in discussions about prolonged employment and reconciliation of care and paid work.

Proactive Personality, Flexible Work Arrangements, and Work- Family Conflict

Despite the prevalence of flexible work arrangements (FWAs), such as flextime and flexplace, offered by organizations around the world, there is still much to learn regarding who is more likely to use FWAs to alleviate work- family conflict (WFC) and under what conditions the use of FWAs actually reduce WFC. Drawing on conservation of resources theory and boundary theory, we developed a moderated mediation model regarding the relationships between proactive personality, FWA use, work-to-non work boundary permeability, and WFC. We tested the model using survey data collected at two time points from 217 employees. Results demonstrate that, regardless of their level of boundary permeability, proactive employees are more likely to use flextime to alleviate WFC. However, proactive employees’ use of flexplace can exacerbate WFC. Only when proactive employees have a low work-to-nonwork boundary permeability does their use of flexplace alleviate WFC.

Lessons from family firms: the use of flexible work arrangements and its consequences

Ongoing trends towards more flexible work arrangements (FWA) have been accelerated by the Covid-19 crisis. Whilst research has shown the overall benefits FWA can have, limited research has explored whether use and benefits of FWA are equal across differentiated organisational contexts and genders. We suggest that individuals working in their family’s business face less organizational constraints that typically hinder employees from taking advantage of FWA. It could be suggested that these workers may make higher use of FWA than individuals in regular employment because of their entrepreneurial status and nepotistic privileges. Consequently, the aim of this paper is to explore if family members working in their family’s business, work under favourable boundary conditions which enable them to more freely make use of and benefit from FWAs. Utilising representative data from the German Family Panel (pairfam), our comparative analysis based on propensity score matching, suggests that family members working in their family’s business (N = 337) do make greater use of FWA than those in regular employment. Counter to common assumptions, the findings reveal that FWA leads to higher workloads for owner-managers but not for family employees. Furthermore, families working in their business show no differences in how they divide household tasks compared to regular employed families–yet they perceive that division to be fairer. This study extends knowledge by introducing family ownership and kinship ties as important boundary conditions to existing theories on FWA, such as life-course theory. It also provides new insights into the commonly assumed consequences of FWA use.

Perceptions of flexible work arrangements in selected African countries during the coronavirus pandemic

Purpose: Employers and governments on the African continent were forced to implement flexible work arrangements (FWAs) to curtail the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) without adequate preparations. This study investigated employees’ perceptions of FWAs adopted by employers in selected African countries during the pandemic.Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional survey research design rooted in a quantitative approach was adopted for this study. Hence, a combination of purposive sampling and snowball technique was adopted to gather valid information on the use of FWAs, employers’ support and safety precautions, information technology (IT) support and productivity in Africa during the lockdown. An online survey link was provided to respondents who were working from home in selected African countries. Data were analysed using a covariance-based structural equation modelling via SmartPLS.Findings/results: The study found that employers’ support and safety precautions, as well as IT support, exert significant influence on the use of FWA in African countries. Therefore, the use of an FWA during the lockdown in selected African countries mediates the relationship between the employer and IT supports, and employees’ productivity.Practical Implications: Employers’ backing and IT support are fundamental for the effective implementation of FWAs and enhancement of employees’ productivity in African countries.Originality/value: There is a shortage of studies on the adoption of FWAs during a pandemic in Africa. This study provides empirical evidence on the use of an FWA and its effect on employees’ productivity during a pandemic in Africa.

University staff and flexible work: inequalities, tensions and challenges

ABSTRACT In 2020, COVID-19 triggered rapid growth in the use of flexible work arrangements (FWA) in universities. While the impacts of this shift are still emerging, this article contributes analysis of the ways university staff experienced FWAs prior to the pandemic. In-depth discussions with sixty staff across eight focus groups highlighted substantial inequalities in access to and take-up of FWAs. Staff described different levels of access to flexibility among academic and professional staff. Many felt individualised processes of requesting flexibility deterred the use of FWAs, and meant capacity to utilise flexibility was serendipitous, and dependent on local managers’ mindsets. By exploring the inequalities and tensions characterising flexible work in universities prior to the pandemic, the article contributes evidence against which to assess the profound changes in university workplaces associated with COVID-19, and informs discussions of the ways equity and access can be addressed in emerging higher education landscapes.

The Use of Flexible Work Arrangements and its Consequences: Lessons from Families in Business

The present study scrutinises the conditions and consequences of using flexible work arrangements (FWA) by examining a unique context: Individuals working in their family’s business which have easier access to FWA because of their entrepreneurial status and nepotistic privileges. This group faces less of the organizational constraints, that typically hinder employees taking advantage of FWA, and thus allows us to learn about the consequences of FWA use in full operation. Utilising representative data from the German Family Panel, our comparative analysis based on propensity score matching suggests that individuals working in their family’s business do indeed make greater use of FWA than those working in regular employment. Against common assumptions in the literature, we find higher workloads only for owner-managers but not for family employees. Further, families in business show no differences in how they divide household tasks compared to regular employed - yet they perceive that division to be fairer. This study thus introduces family ownership and kinship ties as important boundary conditions to existing theories on FWA, and it provides empirical data that suggests the need to revise commonly assumed consequences of FWA use.

Does flexible work ‘work’ in Australia? A survey of employed mothers’ and fathers’ work, family and health

ABSTRACT Workplace flexibility is perceived to benefit parents yet evidence of the effectiveness of formal work arrangements in promoting parents’ health is mixed, and few have evaluated informal flexibility. This study investigates Australian mothers’ and fathers’ use of formal (employer-provided) and informal (self-directed) work arrangements and associations with work-family conflict and health outcomes (psychological distress, occupational fatigue, burnout). Online survey data from a national cross-sectional sample of 4268 employed parents (one or more children ≤18 years) were collected in 2016. Standardised measures of health outcomes were reported. Analyses were stratified by gender given the gendered division of work and care in Australia. Multivariate linear regression analyses showed greater use of flexible work arrangements (e.g. flexitime, flexiplace) was associated with lower fatigue and less burnout for fathers and mothers. Conversely, higher use of flexible leave arrangements (e.g. purchased leave) and informal arrangements (e.g. performing family-related tasks at work) were each associated with poorer health outcomes. Findings contribute novel evidence on the status of workplace flexibility for Australian fathers and mothers. Flexible work arrangements may have some health benefits, yet the widespread use of informal arrangements suggests flexible workplace provisions alone are not meeting parents’ needs for family-related support.

To flex or not to flex? Flexible work arrangements amongst software developers in an emerging economy

Orientation: Professional workers increasingly have the ability to do their work outside normal working hours, while being away from the workplace or from the comfort of their homes. Advancements in technology have made flexible work arrangements (FWAs) much easier and viable for corporates to consider. Research purpose: Although research mostly confirms the benefits of FWAs, research on the outcomes of FWAs is somewhat inconclusive and sometimes contradicting, both within and across developed and emerging economies. Motivation for the study: It is important to advance our understanding of the use of FWAs and their outcomes so that organisations in emerging economies have a valid basis for considering the implementation of FWAs. Research approach/design and method: This study applied survey-based research to investigate the use and outcome of two of the most common FWAs – flexible working-time hours and telecommuting – amongst software developers in an emerging economy. Main findings: The results indicate that employers in South African software development sector have largely adopted FWAs, and that developers use flexible working arrangements and perceive them to be beneficial for themselves and their organisations. The study results confirm that FWAs do not correlate with fewer working hours but do correlate with increased levels of both engagement and performance. Practical/managerial implications: The findings are important in the light of critical shortage of and the resulting high pressure on software developers. Employers in emerging economies such as South Africa could seriously consider implementing FWAs, can probably do so with confidence and are likely to receive support from their staff. Contribution/value-add: The findings of this study are significant because they confirm that the workplace flexibility provided by FWA is effective, also in a developing economy such as South Africa.

‘I might be a bit of a front runner’: An analysis of men's uptake of flexible work arrangements and masculine identity

In most western countries, men's use of flexible work arrangements (FWA) is low. Intersections of gender and organizational culture are likely to contribute to this circumstance but have received little attention. This research aims to investigate men's experiences of FWA use and non‐use to understand contextual factors influencing men's decisions and how men construct their identities in relation to work, parenting and FWA. Based on semi‐structured interviews with 15 men, discourse analysis identified that workplace culture and the ideal worker norm strongly influence men's decision making regarding FWA use, and feature in identity construction. Most men adhered to traditional constructions of masculinity in their talk, even when utilizing FWA which was constructed as an individual choice and a privilege. Some men constructed themselves as ‘ground‐breakers’ but still used traditionally masculine attributes to achieve this. Overall, the results highlighted a need to encourage societal and organizational support for men's FWA use.

Flexible work arrangements, national culture, organisational characteristics, and organisational outcomes: A study across 21 countries

AbstractUsing a contingency perspective, we investigated two complementary topics: (a) the influence of the GLOBE national cultural values and key organisational variables on employee use of flexible work arrangements (FWAs), and (b) the contribution of the level of congruence between cultural values and FWA use on absenteeism and turnover. The results, based on Cranfield Network on Comparative Human Resource Management—a large data set across multiple countries—supported the hypothesised effects of the cultural values on employee use of FWAs and the moderating effects of these cultural values on FWA use and organisational outcomes. Specifically, we found that national cultural values and organisational characteristics were related to outcomes via FWA use; and employees' use of FWAs had the overall effect of reducing absenteeism and turnover, but this effect was weakened when the FWAs were not consistent with cultural values. Theoretically, our results add to our knowledge and understanding of the effects of FWA use on absenteeism and turnover under different degrees of “fit” with cultural context. From a practical perspective, our results suggest that organisations should consider national cultural characteristics before implementing FWAs. A misfit between national culture and FWAs would potentially reduce employee use of FWAs and increase the likelihood of absenteeism and turnover.

Fine‐tuning what we know about employees' experience with flexible work arrangements and their job attitudes

Prior research has generally found positive relationships between flexible work arrangements (FWAs) and employee attitudes. However, we know relatively little about organizational contingencies that affect the strength of these relationships, as there is little multilevel, multicompany research on FWAs. This study explores three aspects of employees' experience with FWAs—perceived availability of the number of FWAs, different types of FWAs, and actual use of FWAs—and their corresponding effects on employee job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Using a large multicompany data set (1,799 companies, 17,895 workers), we found that employees who perceive more FWAs available to them have higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment, especially in organizations that report offering fewer formal FWA policies. Among different types of FWAs, perceived availability of flexible scheduling is more positively associated with job satisfaction than flexible location and hours, and both flexible scheduling and location are more positively associated with organizational commitment than flexible number of hours. We also found that employees who actually use flexible scheduling have lower job satisfaction and organizational commitment than those who have it available but do not use it. The theoretical contributions and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Executive‐level support for flexible work arrangements in a large insurance organization

Strategic workforce initiatives, such as flexible work arrangements (FWAs) are established at the executive level, yet executive support for FWAs has been given scant attention. This study applies Bowen and Ostroff's human resource (HR) process dimensions of distinctiveness, consistency, and consensus to explore how executives in a large Australian insurance company signal support for the implementation of flexible work policy to subordinate supervisors. The findings show that executives signal their support through explicit statements encouraging use of FWAs, through reporting, and by their own use of FWAs. Importantly, the findings also show that the strategic context influence how executives interpret and implement HR policy, in this case with an emphasis on profitability and risk aversion. This study contributes to knowledge about HR policy implementation and the role of executives in shaping a work environment supportive of FWAs.

Flexibility is Meaningful: Employees’ Reactions to Changes in the Use of Flexible Work

Organizations increasingly introduce flexible work arrangements (FWA) to attract and retain talents in their organization. But when employees actually make use of FWAs, they are often seen as less ...

Implications of Childcare Responsibilities for Workplace Performances & Interactions

Scientists with childcare responsibilities are evaluated by their colleagues as less competent and committed. The flexibility stigma has been extensively documented; however, the processes and mechanisms through which the use of flexible work arrangements lead to the flexibility stigma has received less attention. In this theory development paper, we identify mechanisms, grounded in workplace observation, that explain why faculty members who adapt their schedules to care for children may experience stigma in the workplace. We analyze and compare the time control approaches of female and male professors in the physical and formal sciences with and without childcare responsibilities. We show the implications time control and allocation strategies have for social exchange – specifically performances and interactions – in the workplace. Women with childcare responsibilities allocate most workplace interactions and performances to

Flexible work arrangements, work engagement, turnover intentions and psychological health

Flexible work arrangements (FWAs) are often written into company policies to demonstrate organisational sensitivity to potentially difficult interfaces between employees' work and non‐work domains. The current research investigated employees' use of FWAs and relationship to work engagement, with turnover intentions and psychological strain also used as criterion variables for comparison purposes. A heterogeneous sample of Australian employees (N = 823) responded to two waves of data collection separated by a 12‐month interval. It was expected that supportive aspects of organisational culture would be consistent with increased employee utilisation of FWAs, high work engagement, low turnover and low levels of psychological strain, and the opposite would be found for hindering aspects of organisational culture. It was also expected that supportive organisational culture would demonstrate an enduring effect over time. In general, research findings supported these hypotheses. However, the research also identified a negative relationship between use of FWAs and work engagement over time. This suggests that take‐up of FWAs is highly dependent on workplace cultural norms. The implications of these results are discussed.