The Work Life Balance Award Act, a bill designed to establish special recognition for employers that develop and implement work-life balance policies, was introduced in Congress during the Spring of 2010. While the vote failed in the House of Representatives, initiatives related to furthering work-life balance continue, indicating a demand for greater employee benefits. In comparison to other countries, the U.S. offers fewer paid leave and work-life benefits to employees. Proposed legislation includes employer paid family and parental leave, time off for parents to attend school activities, as well as incentives to companies that improve work-life policies.
To attract and retain top talent, an increasing number of companies are offering flexible work arrangements and family friendly cultures. Oregon employers such as Providence, Regence, Nike, and PGE promote good work-life balance as a benefit of working for their organization.
Surveys also indicate that companies are maintaining or enhancing their work-life balance programs. According to the SHRM’s 2009 benefits survey of over 500 employers in the U.S.
- 59% reported their organizations offered wellness programs.
- While Federal law does not require FMLA leave to be paid, 25% of HR professionals reported their organizations did offer paid family leave.
- In addition to flextime, 51% of human resource professionals indicated that their organizations offered some form of telecommuting. (www.shrm.org)
What do Workers Want?
Research continues to support findings that younger workers (often called “Millennials”) expect more flexibility than their predecessors. New technology now allows workers access to their work anywhere and at anytime; giving them a step forward towards a more flexible work environment. Employers are finding that to attract talented new graduates, they have to adopt such flexible policies.
More than ever before, working men and women are both sharing in child and elder care responsibilities, contributing to the need and demand for resources and flexibility. “A full one hundred percent of the recipients of the 100 Best Companies award by Working Mother’s Magazine offer telecommuting and flextime schedules, 98 percent offer job-sharing, and 94 percent offer compressed workweeks. These companies are also committed to helping working parents with their child-care needs: 86 percent provide backup care, and 62 percent provide sick-child care.” (Working Mother, 2009, Annie Finnigan, Susan Goldberg, Patty Orsini, Joanna Ramey, Sarah Scalet and Vicki M. Young)
The trend is not isolated to young workers and working parents. Every age group desires balance and flexibility while they manage their professional and personal interests and responsibilities. Because many professions do not measure the production of work by the number of hours and the employee being physically at a work-site, workers are inquiring more about flexible work arrangements.
Popular work-life benefit programs include:
- Flex-time
- Part-time
- Sabbatical leave
- Telecommuting
- Child care
- Elder care
- Paid & Unpaid Leaves
- Volunteer time
- Job-sharing
- Employee assistance programs
- Gym subsidies & wellness programs
- Concierge services
- Paid Family Leave
What Can Employers Do?
As businesses attempt to manage their expenses, it may not be practical to introduce new benefit programs. However, if a company has a desire to commit to a work-life balance program but does not have the budget, an organization can take a few steps to improve their overall stance on work-life balance:
- Keep employees informed of your existing benefit programs. Employee perception of benefits can be more important than the benefits themselves. For example, employees are generally most familiar with the vacation and health benefits, but, do they understand how to use your Employee Assistance and Wellness programs? Provide clear implementation, easy access and ongoing communication and training; insuring employees are well-informed of the advantages and how the benefits can be used. (You may also consider involving employee peers who have used the benefits in your training.)
- Ask employees which benefits they value most. While studies indicate that flexible work schedules are in high demand, preferences may vary by company. Survey your employees and ask them to rank the importance of various benefit programs. Once you have a good sense of your employees’ priorities, you can then use your budgeted dollars to design a package that is specific to your employee group.
- Explore the possibility of flexible work arrangements. There may be an opportunity to reduce expenses and retain valuable employees by introducing flex-time, telecommuting and job sharing. Allow your employees to ask questions and be open to trying different arrangements. Be clear regarding eligibility criteria and the job expectations when implementing a new program.
Legislative developments, technology and worker demand all play a role in the increasing focus on work-life balance. Though it may not be required by law, many employers are strategically creating cultures focused on balancing the needs and interests of their employees and the business. Companies are seeing work-life flexibility as a competitive advantage and opportunity to recruit, motivate and retain productive employees.
For more information about proposed legislation and work-life balance programs, contact a Xenium Human Resource Business Partner.