On September 16, 1996, Business Week published a survey dealing with a recent trend in management : trying to implement work-family strategies. This is an important issue for managerial practices. In the following, these new work-family benefits will be examined; the results and problems will be evaluated and recommendations will be presented.
To begin with, why companies are increasingly concerned about their employees' family lives ? According to Business Week's survey, 42 % of employees think that their work has a negative impact on their personal lives. That is why some companies are trying to accommodate family concerns : making employees happier and less worried about home while working may be profitable for both parties.
The first constraint imposed on workers is time. Quite often, they do not have enough time to dedicate to their families. Trying to change this situation, some firms offer convenient services that help employees in this respect, such as elder-care assistance, child-care (sometimes on-site), pet care, take-out dinners, work from home... On-site services spare employees the stress and time in locating such facilities somewhere else. Second, companies increasingly give their employees the freedom to schedule their working hours. Indeed, flexible scheduling seems to be the best way to answer employees' specific needs, because they can choose the most appropriate schedule regarding their personal lives. In this way, firms adapt themselves to workers' needs, and this policy is revolutionary because not only companies provide new services to employees, but also they revise their working structure itself.
Finally, some firms offer their staff what can appear as true gifts : a paid "Balance Day" off once a year, paid week-ends in nice hotels where employees can bring their families... In doing so, companies wish to establish a friendly atmosphere within the working place and to provide an opportunity for the managers to socialize with their employees. They demonstrate their understanding of family requirements and want to show that, for them, family-orientated culture is as important as any other aspect of the business. In order to make managers aware of family needs, a specific training was developed. New positions were also created : work-life committees were set up to identify workers' family requirements and to find the best way to fulfill them. These strategies now play such an important role in human resources management that they require specialization.
If they are fully implemented, family-friendly programs benefit both employees and employers. When workers are responsible for adjusting their schedules to match work and family, they can get control over their personal lives. It is also a way of being involved in the companies' management procedures. What is more, a flexible schedule fitted to the employee's needs results in the reduction of his cognitive dissonance between work and family : he is satisfied with his working hours because they do not interfere with his family life anymore. The other work-family strategies mentioned above also represent supportive working conditions which contribute to employees' satisfaction. As a result, their commitment to their companies is likely to increase : says Kevin Murphy, an employee in Dupont : "I feel I owe them something back."
Higher productivity and innovation are the result of this greater commitment : workers want to benefit their companies because their companies have showed concern about their needs. So, employees are more motivated, all the more so as they are completely dedicated to their jobs. As they perform well, they get the feeling of accomplishment which in turn increases their satisfaction. In addition, absenteeism and turnover are likely to decrease.
As a conclusion, on the one hand, family-friendliness may be considered as an incentive to improve workers' performances. It seems that offering employees facilities and flexibility makes them happier because they have the control over their jobs and their private lives. On the other hand, rewards (ie, work-family benefits) are given to employees prior to actual performances. They have to demonstrate to their companies that they deserve it. In reality, however, work-family strategies still are not fully implemented. For some workers, demanding more flexibility to meet family requirements still represent a threat to their careers. They still have to choose between their family and their career. Many of them do not take full advantage of the new benefits because they feel pressures from management. Nevertheless, the fact is that family-orientated programs and work do not interfere with each other.
Sometimes, the benefits of these programs do not distribute evenly across the firm's hierarchy. Some advantages available to the top management are not accessible to the average employees. It appears to be unfair since the need of family programs does not depend on the position. To fully implement these programs, a good communication between managers and employees is required. As 60 % of employees report that management does not take people into account when making decisions, it can be inferred that hierarchy still represents an obstacle to greater, more efficient cooperation between the two parties. Some managers are reluctant to give up their decision-making power even if it is in the company's interest. Yet managers must direct their attention to what will help employees become more productive : allowing employees to be part of the decision-making process which directly affects their lives. Personal negotiation between the decision-maker and the employee is crucial for the success of the family strategies because it allows the employee to communicate his specific needs to the management and it helps the managers to design the benefits accordingly. Lastly, many companies do not integrate family friendliness into their work procedures and designs. They just provide services. They are not ready to review their business structure. Yet, the results have shown that rethinking it according to employees' family requirements is the best way to make them more efficient.
In conclusion, managers can still improve work-family strategies, offering more services to all employees and integrating these strategies into the business itself. Indeed, many workers in the U.S. feel a loss of control over their lives. It has been demonstrated that the ability of workers to respond to their family needs can be linked with job satisfaction. The increased satisfaction on the job will enhance loyalty and productivity. So managers should develop and implement these work-family programs. All the more so as the benefits easily outweigh the costs.