WORK-LIFE INTEGRATION
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? And IS IT FEASIBLE?
Introduction
In today's fast pace competitive society, there is a significant underlying issue in every industry across all staffing levels which surround the issues of work life integration. It is more than a buzzword or HR policy; it is a key component in understanding work retention, job satisfaction and career development for women. It is no longer about balance because balance implies that work and life are opposites of each other instead employees and employers need to view work-life as a well-integrated whole. The growing concern of work life integration is that it crosses over in other issues of the business, attract and retain quality staff, staff retention/turnover, health and wellness of employee and productivity. The strongest factors associated with an employee's ability to integrate work and family is a supportive supervisor and workplace culture.
What is Work/Life?
Today many companies prefer the terms "work/life" or "lifecycle" to work/family balance. Employees are diverse, and they face a complex range of personal issues and responsibilities that is not adequately described by the term "family." The change in terms reflects a more meaningful understanding of the broad range of personal issues that affect the workplace and the ways that work influences an employee's personal life. Work/Life strategies are initiatives by employers to attract the talented workforce needed to compete, to retain them, and to make them productive in the face of growing family and personal issues. Initiatives include programs, policies, practices, training and cultural changes that enable employees to stabilize responsibilities at work with obligations and ...