Support For Work-family Balance Research Articles

Maternity protection and work-family balance support policies: A Korean case study

More Korean women participate in economic and social activities, but also more of them decide not to work or to delay childbirth. This study used data from the Korean Longitudinal Survey of Women & Families (KLoWF) between 2010 and 2018 to examine changes in awareness of the policies on maternity protection and work-family balance support, and the factors behind them. We selected 972 female workers (between 15 and 49 years of age) for this analysis. Using Growth Mixture Modelling (GMM), we identified three types of changes in awareness. Having lower education levels and fewer children, working in production rather than professional management, and having a smaller workforce increase the likelihood of being in the ‘reducing’ type of awareness change. These findings suggest the need for a review of current maternity protection and work-family balance support systems, and guide the future directions for improvement which we identify at the end of the article.

Exploring practices that impact women’s career advancement within the workplace: a qualitative approach

PurposeThis study aims to explore organizational factors that impact women’s career advancement. Knowledge of organizational practices that promote or obstruct women’s career progress is vital for women, firms and governments.Design/methodology/approachA total of 237 women participated in the study from the service sector in Johannesburg (South Africa). Participants were selected using a convenient sampling approach. Researchers used a questionnaire, consisting of demographic and open-ended questions, to gather data. Comments were analyzed using a thematic content analysis approach.FindingsFindings reveal that prioritizing women, offering skills development opportunities, providing growth opportunities, assisting women in managing their careers, offering mentorship and having work-family support initiatives are practices that promote women’s career advancement. Conversely, practices that foster stagnation of women’s careers, distrust in women’s leadership abilities, preference for external candidates, people–related malpractices, male domination/preference, lack of role models and work-family balance support, hamper women’s career advancement.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study will contribute to women’s empowerment. Organizations should provide a conducive atmosphere by instituting practices that promote their female employees' career advancement. Firms also should intentionally take practical steps to address practices that impede women’s career progression. The results of this study will also help the government to design appropriate policies that will promote the career progression of women employees.Originality/valueThis study presents findings from an analysis of qualitative data collected from 237 women to provide insight into the experiences of women working within the service industry in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Impact of work-family balance results on employee work engagement within the organization: The case of Slovenia.

Organizations strive to increase the work engagement of their employees, as engaged employees are more productive employees, but often neglect the significant effects of work-family balance on work engagement. Numerous studies confirm the importance of work-family balance and work engagement, but there is lack of research that explores the relationship between the concepts. Our research fills a research gap in investigating the impact of work-family balance on work engagement, both directly and through individual perceptions of organizational support for work-family balance. The main aim of our research is to empirically test the relationships between the policies and practices of organizations regarding work-family balance, work-life balance and work engagement. Using validated questionnaires, we collected data on organizational support for work-family balance (family-friendly policies and practices, support by leader, support by co-workers, working hours and complexity of work), work-family balance and work engagement. The quantitative data for our analysis was collected through a survey of 343 online participants who were employees in various positions in companies in Slovenia. Our results show that the organization's work-family balance policies and practices, such as support by leader, co-workers, and family-friendly policies and practices, have a positive impact on the individual's work-family balance, that work-family balance leads to an increase in work engagement, and that the individual's perception of the organization's work-family balance support leads to an increase in work engagement. Knowledge of important work-family balance implications with an understanding of organizational support for work-family balance and the relationships between the constructs of work-family balance and work engagement can be beneficial to business leaders. This understanding can help them to strengthen employee work engagement through family-friendly policies and practices, and thereby contributing to the area of employee behavior and improving employee productivity.

Exploring Women's Multi-Level Career Prospects in Pakistan: Barriers, Interventions, and Outcomes.

Utilizing the relational framework of diversity management and social role theory, this exploratory study illuminates the career prospects of women working in the patriarchal society of Pakistan. With the help of Nvivo 12 Plus, themes were generated based on 27 in depth, semi-structured interviews. The findings showed an interrelated web of factors interacting at three levels; macro, meso, and micro; that were explained on the premises of the social role theory. Major impediments to women’s career progress were religious interpretations, socio-cultural factors and Sifarish (i.e., favoritism/nepotism) at the macro-level. At the meso-level, the barriers involved segregation, discrimination, harassment, and lack of work-family balance initiatives at the workplace. The micro-level obstacles involved personal values and needs, queen bee syndrome and a lack of awareness. The experiences of Pakistani women varied based on socio-economic status, marriage, religion and various aspects of individual identity, that intersected with gender and accordingly affected their career outcomes either positively or negatively. Therefore, the study also contributes to the emergent area of intersectional studies which posits that individuals experience various facets of identity concurrently and that these factors do not operate separately but are interrelated and interact. Moreover, the study also highlights the interventions for creating gender parity like clarification of Islamic guidelines, strict accountability of workplace policies, and the provision of work-family balance support. The outcomes highlighted by the respondents included happiness, confidence, agency, and improved quality of life. The paper concludes with implications for theory and practice, limitations, and future research avenues.

Utilization of Work-Family Balance Support Policy and Factors Associated with Retention Intention among Married Female Officers with Preschool Children.

This study aimed to identify utilization of the work-family support policy (WFSP) and factors affecting retention intention among Korean female military officers. This cross-sectional survey recruited 103 married female officers from the Korean Army, Navy, and Air force with preschool-aged children through convenience and snowball sampling. Via online surveys from June to November, 2018, the participants self-reported retention intention, work-family conflict, job satisfaction, and utilization of the WFSP. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and multiple linear regression. Retention intention (22.29±5.98) was reported at the mid-level, lower than scores reported in the literature for female workers. Work-family conflict (32.51±5.29) and job satisfaction (63.10±7.45) were above the midpoint levels. Use of maternity leave (100.0%) and parental leave (92.2%) was high, especially compared to the rates of child-care day off (20.4%) and parenting time (20.4%). 'Noticeable increases in childcare services within the army' (22.8%) was reported as the supportive measure needed the most by female military officers. Job satisfaction (β=.43, p≤.001), the use of parenting time (β=-0.29, p=.002), living type (β=-.18, p=.043), and service type (β=-.16, p=.035) significantly influenced retention intention. CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the priority areas of importance within the WFSP and suggest that a family-friendly culture can improve female officers' retention intention. Accordingly, policy changes at the Ministry of National Defense improving the system to enhance a family-friendly culture in the military is expected to strengthen the retention intention of female officers and contribute to excellence in the military workforce.

Is Work-Family Balance a Possibility? The Case of Kenyan Female Teachers in Urban Public Schools.

Young mothers in Kenyan public schools experience a high level of work-family conflict. Currently, there are no formal family-friendly policies, despite declining levels of extended family support and rising cost of hiring domestic workers. A total of 375 female teachers from three towns and Nairobi city filled open-ended surveys to examine the informal work-family balance support offered by the supervisors and colleagues, and suggestions to improve it. Open coding and content analysis were used to analyze the data. Key findings indicate teachers asked for permission/assistance from supervisor/colleagues to attend to family emergencies, and they excessively relied on the supervisor for emotional support (empathy) and counseling from co-workers. Some women did not know whether the school could provide work- family balance support and failed to ask for any support, while others did not receive any support. The school culture determined whether schools had family-friendly culture or not. Schools should increase flexibility, devise ways to reduce workloads and build daycare centers, school houses and offer breastfeeding breaks. These strategies will significantly reduce emotional support reliance on supervisors and use of ad hoc measures. There is a need to sensitize supervisors/teachers on work-family balance needs, and foster a family-friendly environment. Key words: Work-family conflict, teachers, family-friendly policies, gender.

여성 근로자의 일·가정양립지원제도 인식과 활용에 관한 연구

여성 근로자의 일·가정양립지원제도 인식과 활용에 관한 연구

Mediators of transformational leadership and the work-family relationship

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the ways in which leaders influence follower’s work-life management. Specifically, the authors propose that personal (positive affect), social (managerial support for work-family balance), and job (autonomy) resources mediate the relationships between transformational leadership and work-family conflict (WFC) and enrichment.Design/methodology/approach– The sample included 411 managers in 37 hotel properties across the USA.Findings– The relationship between TL and WFC was mediated by autonomy, positive affect and managerial support for work-family balance, whereas the relationship between TL and WFE was mediated by managerial support for work-family balance and positive affect.Research limitations/implications– This study constructs a foundation for future integration of leadership and work and family literatures. It also provides preliminary support for work-family enrichment theory (Greenhaus and Powell, 2006), as well as the value of examining leadership through a resource-based perspective.Practical implications– Interventions designed to enhance leadership may be effective not only in the workplace, but also for reducing WFC and promoting enrichment.Originality/value– This study is the first to directly examine the effect of transformational leadership and both WFC and enrichment. Further, it specifies mediating variables that underlie these relationships.

‘Rationalizing’ Organizational Support for Work-family Balance

This study uses multi-level data from firms across 21 countries to empirically test an integrative framework of work-family balance (WFB). This framework combines the resource-based view of the firm with institutional theory and links the WFB policy context with firm practices and performance. HLM analyses reveal that both organizational and national-level factors relate to the use of firm mechanisms to support WFB. National WFB policies also have some bearing on firm performance. We conclude that firm use of WFB-support mechanisms relates to both normative and institutionally moderated economic rationality. Implications for practitioners, policy-makers, and researchers are discussed.

Manager Support for Work-Family Issues and its Impact on Employee-Reported Pain in the Extended Care Setting

Supervisor-level policies and the presence of a manager engaged in an employee's need to achieve work-family balance, or "supervisory support," may benefit employee health, including self-reported pain. We conducted a census of employees at four selected extended care facilities in the Boston metropolitan region (n = 368). Supervisory support was assessed through interviews with managers and pain was reported by employees. Our multilevel logistic models indicate that employees with managers who report the lowest levels of support for work-family balance experience twice as much overall pain as employees with managers who report high levels of support. Low supervisory support for work-family balance is associated with an increased prevalence of employee-reported pain in extended care facilities. We recommend that manager-level policies and practices receive additional attention as a potential risk factor for poor health in this setting.

The Influence Of Coaching On Employee Perceptions Of Supervisor Effectiveness And Organizational Policies

This study investigates the effects of the use of coaching as a management style on supervisor effectiveness and key employee-related organizational policies. Specifically, we examine the direct effects of coaching on employee perceived supervisor effectiveness and organizational work-family balance support, as well as the impact of supervisory effectiveness on employee perceived effectiveness of organizational rewards programs. Ordinal regression was used to test the hypotheses, and data from 134 undergraduate and graduate business students enrolled in a Northeast university who indicated that they were currently employed on a full-time basis support these relationships. Results show that the degree to which employees view their supervisor as acting as a coach positively influences perceived supervisor effectiveness and organizational work-family balance support. Additionally, results support the notion that organizational work-family balance support also leads to perceived supervisor effectiveness which, in turn, positively influences employee perception regarding the effectiveness of organizational rewards programs.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF BOOKS

supervisor support as issues that may be salient to the experience of conflict between paid employment (work) and family roles. Consistent with previous research, a link was predicted between family-responsive policies and reduced work-family conflict, and a direct association between work-family conflict and psychological strain was posited. Perceptions of the organization as familysupportive were also predicted to mediate the relationship between these policies and levels of work-family conflict, while supervisor support was expected to moderate (buffer) the relationship between conflict and strain. To test these hypotheses, data were collected from 355 managerial personnel in New Zealand. Although work-family conflict and psychological strain were strongly linked, the availability of organizational policies had no significant association with levels of conflict or strain, while policy usage was related only to work-to-family interference and not family-to-work interference. On the other hand, perceptions of the organization as family-supportive and supervisor support for workfamily balance displayed significant relationships with key variables, highlighting the importance of these variables for interventions designed to ameliorate the negative impact of work-family conflict on managerial well-being. Implications for the effective implementation of family-responsive interventions are discussed.