scholarly journals Flexible friends? Flexible working time arrangements, blurred work-life boundaries and friendship

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 464-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivi Bach Pedersen ◽  
Suzan Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Flexible Working ◽  
Time Structures

The changing nature and demands of work raise concerns about how workers can find time for activities such as friendship and leisure, which are important for well-being. This article brings friendship into the work-life debate by exploring how individuals do friendship in a period characterized by time dilemmas, blurred work-life boundaries and increased employer- and employee-led flexible working. Interviews with employees selected according to their working time structures were supplemented by time use diaries. Findings indicate that despite various constraints, participants found strategies for making time for friendship by blurring boundaries between friends and family and between friends and work. However, the impacts of flexible working time structures were complex and double-edged.

scholarly journals Gender, Flexibility Stigma and the Perceived Negative Consequences of Flexible Working in the UK

2018 ◽  
Vol 151 (2) ◽  
pp. 521-545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heejung Chung
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Flexible Working ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Negative Perceptions ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThis study examines the prevalence and the gender differences in the perceptions and experiences of flexibility stigma—i.e., the belief that workers who use flexible working arrangements for care purposes are less productive and less committed to the workplace. This is done by using the 4th wave of the Work-Life Balance Survey conducted in 2011 in the UK. The results show that 35% of all workers agree to the statement that those who work flexibly generate more work for others, and 32% believe that those who work flexibly have lower chances for promotion. Although at first glance, men are more likely to agree to both, once other factors are controlled for, women especially mothers are more likely to agree to the latter statement. Similarly, men are more likely to say they experienced negative outcomes due to co-workers working flexibly, while again mothers are more likely to say they experienced negative career consequences due to their own flexible working. The use of working time reducing arrangements, such as part-time, is a major reason why people experience negative career outcomes, and can partially explain why mothers are more likely to suffer from such outcomes when working flexibly. However, this relationship could be reverse, namely, the stigma towards part-time workers may be due to negative perceptions society hold towards mothers’ commitment to work and their productivity. In sum, this paper shows that flexibility stigma is gendered, in that men are more likely to discriminate against flexible workers, while women, especially mothers, are more likely to suffer from such discrimination.

Teleworker performance in the COVID-19 era in Japan

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
Toshihiro Okubo ◽  
Atsushi Inoue ◽  
Kozue Sekijima
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Work Environment ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Japanese Workers ◽  
Good Mental Health ◽  
Flexible Working

This paper investigates teleworkers' efficiency in Japan in the COVID-19 era by using unique survey data on telework. Many Japanese workers started teleworking during the pandemic and found both benefits as well as impediments. Overall, we find that telework experience and the work environment (e.g., having clearly specified tasks and a flexible working system), changes in work-life balance (e.g., working time), and good mental health improves teleworkers' efficiency.

scholarly journals Organizational Initiatives for Promoting Employee Work-Life Reconciliation Over the Life Course. A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annina Ropponen ◽  
Marja Känsälä ◽  
Johanna Rantanen ◽  
Sally Toppinen-Tanner
Keyword(s):  
Intervention Studies ◽  
Turnover Intentions ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Organizational Outcomes ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Work Family Conflict ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Life Course

This review aimed to explore the initiatives, interventions, and experiments implemented by employing organizations and designed to support the work-life reconciliation at workplaces, and the effects of these actions on employees’ well-being at work. A systematic literature review was conducted on the basis of a search in PsycInfo, ERIC, and the ISI Web of Science database of Social Sciences between January 2000 and May 2015. Those studies were included in which either organizational or individual-level initiatives, interventions, or experiments were implemented by employers at workplaces in order to promote the work-life reconciliation of their employees. Work-life reconciliation was considered to encompass all life domains and all career stages from early to the end of working career. The content analysis of 11 studies showed that effective employer actions focused on working time, care arrangements, and training for supervisors and employees. Flexibility, in terms of both working time and other arrangements provided for employees, and support from supervisors decreased work-family conflict, improved physical health and job satisfaction, and also reduced the number of absence days and turnover intentions. Overall, very few intervention studies exist investigating the effects of employer-induced work-life initiatives. One should particularly note the conditions under which interventions are most successful, since many contextual and individual-level factors influence the effects of organizational initiatives on employee and organizational outcomes.

Negotiating Time and Space When Working From Home: Experiences During COVID-19

2021 ◽  
pp. 153944922110338
Author(s):  
Yoko E. Fukumura ◽  
Joseph M. Schott ◽  
Gale M. Lucas ◽  
Burcin Becerik-Gerber ◽  
Shawn C. Roll
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Free Response ◽  
Home Life ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Occupational Patterns ◽  
Home Space

Stay-at-home mandates following the COVID-19 pandemic increased work from home (WFH). While WFH offers many benefits, navigating work in nontraditional contexts can be a challenge. The objective of this study was to explore the benefits and challenges of WFH during COVID-19 to identify supports and resources necessary. Comments from two free-response questions on a survey regarding experiences of WFH ( N = 648, N = 366) were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis. Four themes emerged: time use, considerations of working in the home space, intersections between work-life and home-life, and temporality of WFH as situated within a pandemic. Across all themes were concerns related to participation in both work and home roles, work performance, and well-being. Findings highlight the importance of support during times of disruption of occupational patterns, roles, and routines. Despite challenges, many individuals hoped to continue WFH. Organizations should consider the complex intersections of work-life and home-life to develop supportive policies and resources.

scholarly journals Flexible Working Arrangements in Malaysia and the Participation of Women in the Labour Force

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Geetha Subramaniam
Keyword(s):  
Labour Force ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Occupational Status ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Married Women ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Flexible Working

<p>The aim of this thesis is to shed light on possible reasons for the stagnation in the participation rate of women in the Malaysian workforce by focusing on the phenomenon of flexible working arrangements. This is researched in the context of the possibility of flexible working arrangements helping women achieve work-life balance and how such work affects their well-being. Using a mixed method approach, the study addresses three main questions:- are Malaysian women interested in flexible working arrangements? would flexible working arrangements be useful in bringing more women into the labour force? and what impacts do flexible working arrangements have on their well-being? The study was conducted in the Klang Valley, which has a total population of over seven million people and is the heartland of Malaysia's industry and commerce. It employed both quantitative and qualitative methods. For the quantitative approach, self-administered questionnaires were distributed to women employees working in seven organisations which have flexible working arrangements and seven organisations with fixed working arrangements. A random sample of 415 female employees from 14 selected organisations in the services sector were identified. To complement the statistical data, 30 women were interviewed. Findings from the logistic regression analysis revealed that flexible working arrangements at the workplace are preferred by women who are more educated, earning a higher income and are at the higher end of the occupational status. It further revealed that flexible working arrangements will encourage more women to work in paid labour since they have a better work-life balance and more empowerment. The information gathered from the qualitative interviews concerned women’s wellbeing in terms of work-life balance, empowerment and lifestyles. While most of the women experienced work-life balance barriers, some common threads and themes revealed that flexible working arrangements will be a good option towards achieving work-life balance and had a positive effect on women’s well-being in terms of work-life balance and household empowerment. The qualitative interviews showed that workplace flexibility can improve the working women’s work-life balance, especially among married women with young children and hence, encourage women to participate in paid labour. In adopting a combination of theoretical approaches, it is argued that there is a greater tendency for Malaysian married women to exit the labour force after having children compared to most other countries and this is primarily due to their caring responsibilities, lack of an enabling environment and the cultural and social factors particular to Malaysia. The study found that flexible working arrangements are very varied in type and cannot be treated as a single, comprehensive package which might be suitable for all women. Further, the implementation of flexible working arrangements at the workplace would not be alone sufficient to bring in more women into the labour force.</p>

scholarly journals The Effect of Using Participatory Working Time Scheduling Software on Employee Well-Being and Workability: A Cohort Study Analysed as a Pseudo-Experiment

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1385
Author(s):  
Rahman Shiri ◽  
Kati Karhula ◽  
Jarno Turunen ◽  
Aki Koskinen ◽  
Annina Ropponen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Short Sleep ◽  
Self Rated Health ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Time Scheduling ◽  
Work Life Conflict

Shift workers are at increased risk of health problems. Effective preventive measures are needed to reduce the unfavourable effects of shift work. In this study we explored whether use of digital participatory working time scheduling software improves employee well-being and perceived workability by analysing an observational cohort study as a pseudo-experiment. Participants of the Finnish Public Sector cohort study with payroll records available between 2015 and 2019 were included (N = 2427). After estimating the propensity score of using the participatory working time scheduling software on the baseline characteristics using multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression and assigning inverse probability of treatment weights for each participant, we used generalised linear model to estimate the effect of using the participatory working time scheduling software on employees’ control over scheduling of shifts, perceived workability, self-rated health, work-life conflict, psychological distress and short sleep (≤6 h). During a 2-year follow-up, using the participatory working time scheduling software reduced the risk of employees’ low control over scheduling of shifts (risk ratio [RR] 0.34; 95% CI 0.25–0.46), short sleep (RR 0.70; 95% CI 0.52–0.95) and poor workability (RR 0.74; 95% CI 0.55–0.99). The use of the software was not associated with changes in psychological distress, self-rated health and work-life conflict. In this observational study, we analysed as a pseudo-experiment, the use of participatory working time scheduling software was associated with increased employees’ perceived control over scheduling of shifts and improved sleep and self-rated workability.

scholarly journals Flexible Working Arrangements in Malaysia and the Participation of Women in the Labour Force

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Geetha Subramaniam
Keyword(s):  
Labour Force ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Occupational Status ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Married Women ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Flexible Working

<p>The aim of this thesis is to shed light on possible reasons for the stagnation in the participation rate of women in the Malaysian workforce by focusing on the phenomenon of flexible working arrangements. This is researched in the context of the possibility of flexible working arrangements helping women achieve work-life balance and how such work affects their well-being. Using a mixed method approach, the study addresses three main questions:- are Malaysian women interested in flexible working arrangements? would flexible working arrangements be useful in bringing more women into the labour force? and what impacts do flexible working arrangements have on their well-being? The study was conducted in the Klang Valley, which has a total population of over seven million people and is the heartland of Malaysia's industry and commerce. It employed both quantitative and qualitative methods. For the quantitative approach, self-administered questionnaires were distributed to women employees working in seven organisations which have flexible working arrangements and seven organisations with fixed working arrangements. A random sample of 415 female employees from 14 selected organisations in the services sector were identified. To complement the statistical data, 30 women were interviewed. Findings from the logistic regression analysis revealed that flexible working arrangements at the workplace are preferred by women who are more educated, earning a higher income and are at the higher end of the occupational status. It further revealed that flexible working arrangements will encourage more women to work in paid labour since they have a better work-life balance and more empowerment. The information gathered from the qualitative interviews concerned women’s wellbeing in terms of work-life balance, empowerment and lifestyles. While most of the women experienced work-life balance barriers, some common threads and themes revealed that flexible working arrangements will be a good option towards achieving work-life balance and had a positive effect on women’s well-being in terms of work-life balance and household empowerment. The qualitative interviews showed that workplace flexibility can improve the working women’s work-life balance, especially among married women with young children and hence, encourage women to participate in paid labour. In adopting a combination of theoretical approaches, it is argued that there is a greater tendency for Malaysian married women to exit the labour force after having children compared to most other countries and this is primarily due to their caring responsibilities, lack of an enabling environment and the cultural and social factors particular to Malaysia. The study found that flexible working arrangements are very varied in type and cannot be treated as a single, comprehensive package which might be suitable for all women. Further, the implementation of flexible working arrangements at the workplace would not be alone sufficient to bring in more women into the labour force.</p>

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