In today’s work environment a better balance between work and life is increasingly desired by workers. Desire for a better work-life balance has become one of the growing concerns in contemporary society (Wood and de Menezes (2010, p.1575). Therefore it is essential for organisations to incorporate work-life balance strategies with job design and employment policies. According to Wood and de Menezes (2010, p.1575), work-life practices have come to the front position of employment policies in a number of countries in the past ten years. Nankervis et al. (2011, p586) suggest that work-life balance (WLB) 'recognises that employees have different personal needs (e.g. childcare, ageing parents) which need to be accommodated in their work patterns'. However, to find a appropriate way to balance between work and family life has become a great challenge for both males and females in today's highly competitive work environment. This paper is going to address the importance of work-life balance, identify the elements that need to be put into consideration when designing an effective work-life balance program and analyse the elements that need to be put into considerations when implementing an effective work-life program.
It is important to identify the benefits of work-life balance before designing and implementing any work-life balance program. Examining the advantages of work-life balance can help organisations to realise the importance of incorporating work-life balance strategies with their employment policies, consequently they can design and implement effective work-life balance programs in their work environment.
In today's work environment work break is viewed as one of the work-life balance strategies. Promoting health is one of the benefits of work breaks. Taylor (2005, p.461) suggests that pressure and physical inactivity are the two main factors that baffle the achievement of promoting health. Taylor (2005, p.461)
References: Allen, T.D., Herst, D.E., Bruck, C.S. and Sutton, M. 2000. Consequences associated with work-to family conflict: A review and agenda for future research, Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5: 278–308 Barnett, R.C Bond, F. W., and Barnes-Holmes, D. 2007. The role of psychological flexibility in contingency sensitivity. Manuscript in preparation. Bond, F.W.; Flaxman, P.E.; Bunce, D. 2008. The Influence of Psychological Flexibility on Work Redesign: Mediated Moderation of a Work Reorganization Intervention. Journal of Applied Psychology 93(3): 645–654. Eby L.T.; Casper, W.J.; Lockwood, A.; Bordeaux, C.; and Brinley, A. 2005. Work and family research in IO/OB: Content analysis and review of the literature (1980–2002), Journal of Vocational Behavior, 66: 124–197. Greenhaus, J.H.; Collins, K.M. and Shaw, J.D. 2003. The relation between work–family balance and quality of life, Journal of Vocational Behavior, 63:510–531. Heidtman, D. and McGraw, P. 2009. WORK LIFE BALANCE IN AUSTRALIAN LEGAL FIRMS, International Journal of Employment Studies, Vol. 17, No. 2: 1-33. Jang, S.J.; Park,R Nord, S.J.; Fox, S.; phoenix, A. and Viano, k. 2002. Real-world reactions to work-life balance programs: Lessons for effective implementation. Organisational Dynamics, Vol. 30, No.3, 223-238. Parkes, L.P. and Langford, P.H. 2008. Work–life balance or work–life alignment? A test of the importance of work–life balance or employee engagement and intention to stay in organisations. Journal of Management & Organization, 14: 267–284. Pocock, B. 2003. The Work–Life Collision: What work is doing to Australians and what to do about it, Federation Press, Sydney. Pocock, B. 2005. Work–life ‘balance’ in Australia: Limited progress, dim prospects, Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 43:198–209. Taylor, W. 2005. Transforming Work Breaks to Promote Health. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 29(5): 461-465. Wood, S. and de Menezes, L. 2010. Family-friendly management, organisational performance and social legitimacy. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 21(10): 1575-1597.