Work Life Balance and HRM

Figure 1- Work Life Balance (Yatin, 2017)

Work and home can be figured as the most important sectors in any person’s life. For employees managing the balance between work and life will decide behaviors and attitudes of that person towards company.

What is Work-life Balance (WLB)?

Figure 2 - Definitions of WLB (Shodhganga, 2017) 

By considering all definitions, according to author’s perspective WLB is proper prioritizing between “work” and “life”. Sanichar (2004) stated, there are many factors influencing WLB.

Figure 3- WLB effecting factors (Sanichar, 2004)

According to research done by Kurtzleben (2013) among US people, both male and female are increasing their stress level due to lack of WLB that cannot be even controlled by HRM. It can be evaluated that, employee WLB effecting factors can be controlled by HRM only up to a limited extend, which enables a great challenge. Most of the time HR will directly able to control organizational factors, but only limited influence can be done on individual, societal and other factors.

According to CIPD Research Report (2009), a research done among London multinational companies’ employees, it has been identified a positive relationship between WLB and employee commitment. It can be analyzed that employees who have great WLB will have good performance and commitment for company, which has been a key contemporary issue for HR for ensuring WLB on each and every employee.  

According to Clutterbuck (2003), study done on Roffey Park Institute, 38% of the sample of employees considers leaving current employer to gain better WLB, even if it meant reduced pay and low percentage of employees make use of available WLB practices. It can be analyzed that, employees worth WLB more than money and possibility of maintaining employee WLB by HR influence on company talent retention. As HR goal is to become a profit center, though it creates cost, HR invest money with a risk on WLB programmes, assuming for getting better performances and talent retention from employees. But in most of companies, implementing WLB programmes is not enough to ensure employee WLB, proper trainings and knowledge must also be provided about WLB programmes in order to convert this HR invest in to a profit center, which has been a great contemporary issue in today business world. 

References

CIPD Research Report. (2009). Employment Trends Survey: People Driving. Pertemps and Confederation of British Industry , pp-3-9.

Clutterbuck. D. (2003). Managing Work-life Balance: A guide for HR in achieving organizational and individual change. London: UK Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Kurtzleben. D. (2013). Men and Women Both Stressed About Work-Life Balance. Staff Writer , pp-10-15.

Sanichar, A. (2004). The strategic implications and management considerations of work/life programmes. . Journal of Contemporary Management. , pp-31-44.

Shodhganga. M. (2017). Work Life Balance and Job Satisfaction . Bitstream , pp-7-9.

Yatin. (2017). How to strike a healthy work life balance – 5 key elements. Work Culture , pp- 2-9.