InterventionsDec1999

CMR Canada Employee and Family Assistance Programs
Serving Canadians for 21 Years

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CMR Canada - Employee and Family Assistance Programs

Head Office:  Suite 600, Bow Valley Square 4, 250 - 6 Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta   T2P3H7
Telephone (403) 263-2200  Fax (403) 256-8291  E-mail:  cmr@cmrcanada.ca

December 1999

Note: This article presents only one perspective on a body of information on the subject and is not intended to be definitive. CMR Canada recommends you seek additional perspectives on the subject.

BALANCING WORK AND FAMILY

(Note: Although the following study has been done with employees of Saskatchewan organizations it does, we believe, very closely define a similar situation in Alberta.)

INTRODUCTION

Have you ever felt as though you "just can't handle it all?"
Are you able to take time off work to care for a sick child or help your aging father face a health crisis?
If you're an employer, have you ever felt productivity is suffering but you don't know why?

Everyone at all levels of society is becoming more and more aware of the stress we face these days as we struggle to balance our responsibilities at home and at work. Too often, we have to choose between the demands of work and family - between doing our jobs and caring for our children or, increasingly, our elderly parents and relatives.

And, everyone, it seems, is working longer and harder. Approximately 20 per cent of Canadian workers work more than 60 hours a week. Yet, many people are unemployed and many more are forced to work part-time. A recent study on families in Canada showed that, in 1994, all Canadian families with incomes above $26,000 worked more hours than in 1984.

This isn't just a personal problem and it isn't solely a "women's" issue - it's a problem that affects all aspects of our society. Whether you're an employee or an employer, it affects you and your family, the people you work with, your organization and your community.

This research project was designed to explore how the changing relationship between family and work affects organizations and employees in Saskatchewan. Specifically, it "takes the pulse" of workplaces in Saskatchewan by assessing "vital" signs in four areas: work-family balance, work climate, work attitudes and outcomes and the health of the worker. This research is part of a much larger Balancing Work and Family Initiative undertaken by the Government of Saskatchewan. Details on the larger Initiative can be found in the report of the Public Task Force on Balancing Work and Family 1998, Towards More Work-Family Balance in Saskatchewan, August 1998.

The survey data examined in this report were obtained from a sample of 5,426 employees (36% response rate), who work for medium and large Saskatchewan-based organizations (i.e. organizations who employee more than 100 employees) in the public, private, Crown and not-for-profit sectors (NFP). The data reviewed in this report would indicate that many employees in Saskatchewan can be considered to be high risk with respect to work-family conflict. The following trends can be observed from the survey data.

Dependant care responsibilities are high, but supports are low

	Many employees in the province of Saskatchewan are members of dual-income families who are in the "full-nest" stage of the lifecycle (i.e. they have responsibilities for childcare, eldercare or both). Such employees need to balance the demands of work with responsibilities and duties outside of work.
	Many of those who are employed have young children living at home. In this sample: o 18% have children under three living at home o 26% have children between the ages of four and five years living at home
	Many employees have some kind of eldercare responsibility. Over half of those who responded to this survey (57%) had some type of eldercare responsibility: o 2% care for elderly family members at home o 33% care for elderly relatives who live nearby o 30% care for elderly relatives who live elsewhere
	One in five respondents to this survey: o are members of the "sandwich" generation (i.e. have both childcare and eldercare responsibilities); and, o have a parent, spouse/partner or dependant with some form of disability.
	Almost half of the respondents feel that they have little control over the availability of high quality daycare, sick-childcare, after school care, and care for an elder dependant.

Work demands are heavy
Employees in the province, especially those in managerial and professional positions, are working hard and devoting a significant amount of time and energy to their jobs.

The typical respondent to this survey is scheduled to work 38.6 hours per week, but actually puts in 41.6 hours.

Employees are spending a significant amount of time working evenings and weekends - time traditionally reserved for one's family.

In the three months prior to this survey being administered, approximately half of the sample:

	worked two out of four weekends and six evenings-out of a possible twenty;
	spent 7.5 hours, on average, working at home outside of regular office hours or on their days off - supplemental work at home (SWAH); and,
	spent 7.5 hours travelling outside of their hometown.
	One in five respondents worked some kind of shift arrangement.

Family demands are also heavy

Respondents indicate that they spend an average of:

	13 hours per week on home chores and errands;
	15 hours per week in childcare; and,
	4 hours per week in eldercare.

The combined time in work and family is high

The typical employee in Saskatchewan spends a total of 77 hours per week in work and family activities.

	Males spend 74.4 hours per week (more time on work, but less time on family).
	Women spend 77.8 hours (less time on work, but more in childcare and home chores).
	Employees who live on farms spend the most time in work and family (84.1 hours per week), largely due to the high amount of time devoted to home chores and paid employment.

The burden is greater for women

The data would suggest that the traditional gendered division of labour seems to be alive and well in Saskatchewan and that many of the women in our sample are working a "double shift" having primary responsibility for childcare.

	75% of the men and 75% of the women in the sample agree that the women in their homes have primary responsibility for childcare.
	Women spend significantly more time than men in: o childcare (16.5 hours per week for women versus 13.4 hours per week for men). o home chores (15.0 hours per week for women versus 10.7 hours per week for men).

THE WORK ENVIRONMENT

The data would suggest that many (but by no means all) of the employees in this sample work for organizations whose sensitivity to work-family concerns has lagged behind the emergence of these concerns as an issue for employees.

	The use of flexible work arrangements by employees in this sample is low (half the respondents work a "regular" workday; 22.5% work flextime; 8.4% work a compressed work week (CWW); 6.1% work part-time).
	Despite the appeal of such work arrangements to employed mothers, the use of formal job sharing and tele-work programs are rare. Only 1.3% of the sample job share; 0.2% formally work from home.
	More employees find flextime, CWW and work-at-home arrangements appealing than have access to these arrangements.
	22% percent of the sample worked in an environment which provided little to no time or location flexibility.
	47% of respondents work for supportive managers; 15% work for non-supportive managers.
	Half the respondents perceive that they have high levels of control over their life; the other half perceive only moderate amounts of control.
	40% of the sample disagreed that there were open and respectful discussions of work/family issues in their organization.
	33% of the respondents work in an organization that has a culture of "hours" (i.e. not acceptable to say "no" to more work).
	30% of the sample work for companies that apply best practice principles in the area of work and family.
	23% work for a company which does not apply such principles.

They often cannot change employers, even if they don't like where they are.

The data suggests that job mobility may be a challenge for many employees in Saskatchewan.

	The majority of respondents (55% of the sample) felt that it would be very difficult for them to find another job with the same pay and benefits.
	Only 20% of respondents felt it would be very easy for them to find another job with the same pay and benefits as they currently have.
	Half of the respondents indicated that they feel that they are overskilled for their current job.

WORK-FAMILY BALANCE

The data reviewed in this report suggest that many employees in the province are giving time to work at the expense of time for themselves and time for their families.

	Half of the respondents report high role overload; 26% experience high interference from work and family.
	For many respondents (approximately half of the sample), work demands are met at the expense of time for the family and time for themselves.
	The typical employee in this sample does not let her or his family responsibilities have a negative impact on their work productivity (only 6% of the sample reported that she/he lets family responsibilities and problems at home affect her/his work).

But, for many, work is a necessity.

Despite its challenges, however, for many of the families in this sample, the dual-income lifestyle may be a necessity. Just over half of the families in our sample (52%) earned less than the Canadian average yearly family income of $55,800 (17% of families earned less than $40,000 per year).

The above set of conditions are affecting employers

The data also indicate that, in some organizations, the work environment may be adversely affecting job performance.

	30% of respondents say they are frustrated by their job on a weekly basis; 30% say they are frustrated daily.
	30% say unplanned work reduces their productivity on a weekly basis; 18% say this occurs daily.
	22% say the stress from working long hours reduces their productivity on a weekly basis; 10% say it does so daily.
	23% say the amount of work they have to do interferes with how well it gets done on a weekly basis; 19% say that this occurs daily.
	18% say conditions at work make it difficult to be productive on a weekly basis; 17% say this occurs daily.

Absenteeism is also higher

Employees in this sample had a mean absenteeism rate of 9.8 days. On average, five days were lost due to ill health, 2.9 days due to family reasons and 1.9 days due to physical or mental fatigue. This is a higher level of absenteeism than was reported by Statistics Canada. Absence due to personal/family reasons in this sample is more than double that observed nationally (2.9 days per year versus 1.2 days).

This set of conditions also affects employees

The data suggest that the mental and physical health of Saskatchewan employees may be compromised by heavy work demands and the challenges they face in combining work and non-work responsibilities. In this sample of 5,500 Saskatchewan employees:

	30% report high levels of job stress;
	50% report high levels of perceived stress;
	25% can be considered to be at risk with respect to job burn-out;
	33% report high levels of depressed mood;
	40% have seen a physician in the past three months due to physical illness; and,
	38% are satisfied with their lives.

Costs of Inaction
Organizations which continue to operate in the traditional fashion (i.e. assume that work and family are separate domains and that work takes priority over family) will pay a price. What are the costs of not addressing work-life balance? The data collected in this study (see Tables) help quantify the price of inaction.

The data would suggest that:

	The direct costs due to absenteeism will increase (nine days a year for those with high work-family conflict versus 2.5 days a year for those with low work-family conflict).
	Turnover will increase as good employees (the ones who are most likely to find work elsewhere) leave non-supportive organizations to work for a company that gives them more flexibility and a greater opportunity to balance work and family demands (30% high intent to turnover in the high work-family conflict group versus 4% high intent to turnover in the low work-family conflict group).
	Costs associated with replacing these employees will increase and productivity may decline if those who leave hold key positions within the company.
	Costs associated with Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and stress-related leave will probably also increase due to the higher levels of job stress, stress and depressed mood in the organization. There will also be costs associated with employees taking "mental health days" off work.

On the other hand, companies which put policies and programs in place to reduce work-family conflict should reap a number of benefits, as employees with low work-family conflict are more likely than those with high work-family conflict to be:

	satisfied with their jobs (78% of those with low work-family conflict have high job satisfaction versus 27% with high work-family conflict); and,
	committed and loyal to their organization and more willing to "go the extra mile" with respect to work effort (68% of those with low work-family conflict have high organizational commitment versus 46% with high work-family conflict).

Such organizations should also benefit from the fact that their workers will be in better mental and physical health (i.e. lower absenteeism and lower EAP costs) and less likely to look for work elsewhere (i.e. better retention, lower costs associated with recruitment and training of new employees).

These data suggest that the costs of inaction are great; the benefits of acting are also significant. Other compelling reasons to look at the issue of work-life balance include the following. The data would suggest that:

By the year 2003, Saskatchewan will probably see a significant increase in the proportion of its workforce in the sandwich generation (i.e. both childcare and eldercare responsibilities). Such employees typically experience higher levels of work-family conflict.

The problems associated with work-family balance will not simply go away with time. The data in Table 53 compares the data collected in Saskatchewan in 1998 to that collected in our 1992-93 national study of work-family conflict. Both studies used the same measures to quantify key work-family constructs. These data suggest that work-family conflict is more of an issue now than it was five years ago.

WHAT CAN BE DONE?

Creating more harmony between work and family is complicated - our "hurried" culture has developed over time as part of a highly technological, modern society with an increasingly globalized economy. While this complicates the task of finding harmony or balance, some experts argue that, if employers are to stay competitive in today's economy, it is critical that they help balance the relationships between work-family obligation, productivity, morale and loyalty to the organization or firm.

As the Conference Board of Canada puts it:

"If human resources are indeed an organization's most important resources, many employers will need to create or modify workplace policies to make them more family-responsive. Those employers who recognize the important links between employees' work and family obligations are taking proactive steps to alleviate the associated pressures, because they understand that the 'struggle to juggle' work and family duties directly affects the bottom line."

The Balancing Work and Family Initiative has taken the first steps towards helping Saskatchewan people work together to make changes to enhance the relationship between work and family. Many North American employers, including those in Saskatchewan, have been working on this issue. Those experiences give researchers in the field information, knowledge and feedback on successful and non-successful attempts to create workplaces that value and encourage a balance between work and family.

We need to keep in mind that there is no "one size fits all" solution to this problem and each workplace must tailor-make its own way of dealing with work and family issues. At the same time, there are a couple of key steps in terms of process which have been shown to be successful:

1. Plan, take your time and work with the whole organization
2. Find out the needs of both the employer and the employees

Plan, take your time and work with the whole organization or company

An organization that wants to address this issue should learn from what is already known about family-friendly workplaces. Ad hoc and piecemeal programs that, for example, offer one or two options such as job-sharing, have not been found to be very effective, unless the organization takes into account the overall culture of the workplace. An organization's culture is defined as:

"The constellation of beliefs, values, habits and norms of behavior which actually operate inside an organization. It's the way work gets done, how people choose to relate to each other, how problems get resolved, what gets celebrated. It's not necessarily what people say/claim are the beliefs/values…but what actually are."

It's been shown that, if the general culture of the organization is not "family-friendly," the few added programs will not be well-used, nor will they reach their potential in employee satisfaction. Under-utilization can easily happen if the organization as a whole is not responsive to employees' family needs, because there is a tacit message in the workplace that "these programs are only for staff who are not serious about career."

Creating a family-friendly workplace is a long-term process that will affect all parts of the organization. This process will take some time. It will probably occur in stages, and it requires a lot of ongoing communication and leadership.

Determining employee and employer needs

It is extremely important to involve all staff members at every level of the organization in order to find out their needs and their concerns about family/work issues. This includes involving the union if there is a collective agreement in place.

As the Conference Board of Canada points out:

"Determining employees' needs can be accomplished through a variety of techniques, including surveys, focus groups, interviews, and consultation with experienced organizations. Regardless of the method or combination of methods adopted, the purpose of gathering the data is to understand:

the extent to which employees perceive stress in balancing work and family obligations;
the sources of stress;
the relationship between workers and management in relation to work-family conflicts;
the extent to which employees have responsibilities for the care of dependent children and adults;
employee awareness of current programs and policies;
demographic information; and,
employee interest in possible programs and initiatives designed to alleviate work-family pressures."

Bradley Googins from the Boston University Centre on Work and Family strongly supports the importance of worker involvement to maintain momentum.

"Somehow, workers and family considerations need to find a voice within companies, start talking about what's useful, what's feasible and how employees and employers can make these things happen…In most organizations today, these things are not discussible. Use the town hall meeting approach, where employees and employers sit down together and brainstorm ways each could meet the others' needs for flexibility. Out of discussions like this could come new standards for what will constitute 'family-friendly' in the next century."

Research suggests that, when employees do have an opportunity to work together to make their workplace more "family-friendly," they are most interested in:

	respect - that this issue is dealt with in an open and legitimate manner,
	flexible work hours and
	managers and supervisors who have a positive attitude towards employees with family responsibilities.

TABLES

Reference: The Government of Saskatchewan - Department of Labour

Note: This article presents only one perspective on a body of information on the subject and is not intended to be definitive.CMR Canada recommends you seek additional perspectives on the subject.

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CMR Canada - Employee and Family Assistance Programs

Head Office
Suite 3500, Bow Valley Square 2
205 - 5 Avenue SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P2V7
Telephone (403)263-2200 in Calgary, or
1-800-567-9953 from elsewhere
Fax (403)256-8291
E-Mail:  CMR Canada

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