WORK-LIFE BALANCE

Today’s workplace has seen drastic changes in comparison to the workplace of the 1950s. Back then, the man of the household was the immediate wage earner and worked outside the home while the woman was essentially a caregiver whose main responsibility was taking care of the children while staying at home.

Luckily, much has changed since then. ✌🏼

Nowadays, work-life balance is a laboriously researched area of interest, specifically concerning those with interest in the quality of working life and the way it is related to a wider quality of life. There is a belief that managing to balance a successful career with a personal or family life comes with many difficulties and can significantly influence one’s job satisfaction and personal life’s roles.

Work-life balance is all about finding an effective way of managing this juggling act between paid work and all other activities that may be significant to people. With a wider meaning, work-life balance can be defined as the ‘fit’ between multiple roles in the life of an individual.

The aftermath

The conflict that exists among work and family is believed to be a factor that may cause stress for individuals. This conflict is connected with poor health issues and it influences employees in the following negative ways:

1. Employees are physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted

2. Employees often cope by turning to the consumption of heavy alcohol

3. Employees don’t have a healthy appetite, and

4. Employees are less involved in doing physical exercise.

The conflict between work and family has an impact not just on employees but also employers. The organizations, for which their employees face such conflict, may face a lot of issues such as:

1. Decline in employees’ job satisfaction

2. High rate of absenteeism

3. High staff turnover, and

4. Poor job performance as a result of stress.

It is crucial that organizations ensure that they encourage and adopt a practical work-life balance policy, meeting the needs of both the organization itself and its employees either by providing flexible working hours, leave and remote working options to name but a few. When employees have control of their working schedule, they are more likely to remain in their existing jobs. Having a say in choosing how many hours to work and when to schedule work can assist employees in responding to family needs. Fortune magazine, back in 2006, found that 79 of the 100 best companies to work for allowed employees the flexibility to work from home.

Policies involving prioritize time for family, friends, and socializing outside of the workplace are more effective in eliciting positive employee performance. Nevertheless, it is vital to realize that establishing a work-life balance policy is not enough by itself; the development of an organizational culture that supports the use of flexible policies is of great importance. 🙌🏼