Before examining how work-life balance programs contribute to increased retention of employees, its better to examine some of the key reasons for employee turnover. It is widely acknowledged that conditions at the workplace affect job turnover. There are many reasons why employees quit because of conditions at the workplace such as long hours, conflict with colleagues and superiors, lack of appreciation shown by employers and unclear job descriptions. For example, long hours at work and increased work intensity both contribute to adverse physical and psychological conditions and lead to negative family functioning. Workplace stress can be caused by long working hours, excessive workloads, weekend duties, inadequate physical activity and an unhealthy lifestyle. All these lead to a reduction in the quality of health. When employees are severely overworked and excessively strained, they experience symptoms of fatigue, depression, musculo-skeletal pains, sleeping disorders and an increase in chronic diseases. When the situation Continue reading
Human Resource Management
Human Resource Management (HRM) is branch of management that deals with people at work, it is concerned with the human dimensions of management of the organization. As organization consists of people, therefore acquiring them, developing their skills, providing them motivation in order to attain higher goal and ensuring that the level of commitment is maintained are the important activities.
Work-Life Balance Programs – Cost or Investment?
Work-life balance programs are fast gaining popularity in developed countries. Work-life balance programs can be defined as any benefits, policies or programs that help employees find ways to manage the demands of the workplace and life outside work. In other words, work-life balance programs are designed as a two pronged approach to achieve meaningful achievement and enjoyment in everyday life. There are many forms of work-life balance programs such as flex-time, child-care facilities at work, gyms and concierge services and paid vacations. Many reasons are cited for the introduction of work-life balance programs at the workplace, the most common being that it increases productivity as well as employee loyalty. While these are all valid justifications, the costs of having work-life balance programs should not be ignored. Therefore, do the benefits of work-life balance programs outweigh the costs? Going further, should these programs be considered a cost or an investment to Continue reading
Benefits of Work-Life Balance
Work-Life Balance doesn’t necessarily mean fewer hours at work. It is about people feeling satisfied by having an extent of control over how, when and where they work, how they can manage their time and stuffs they want and need to do. This balance is achieved when an individual’s right to a fulfilled life inside and outside paid work is accepted and respected as a norm, to the mutual benefit of the individual, business and society. The key aspect of work-life balance only from an employer’s viewpoint is numerous. They are of importance because providing an employee with a balanced work-life existence is for the employer and employee. For an example, if the employee is satisfied and happy, the whole exercise must make business sense to the enterprise. In 21st century, life is increasingly difficult with people managing multiple roles. Therefore, they will only stay with a job that offers Continue reading
Work-Life Balance – Definition, Significance and Importance
Work-life balance is a very broader term in Human Resource Management and often referred to finding the right equilibrium between the different aspects and roles in a life of a person. Although there are different views and concepts about work-life balance but it is generally coupled with maintaining an overall balance in different aspects of life. During the last decade technological revolution has stormed all aspects of life and there were different debates about the future of work. Different scenarios predicted a rising trend in un-employment and economic insecurity. Industrial restructuring and emergence of latest technology no only affected the importance of workforce but it was also felt that employees will be treated as superfluous overheads. History of Work-Life Balance In 1986, the term “Work-Life Balance” was first identified, but it’s usage in everyday language was still sporadic for a certain number of years. Although, interestingly work-life programs existed in Continue reading
Nepotism in the Workplace
Nepotism can be defined as the practice of making employment decisions on the basis of relationship. It can also be defined as hiring or promoting a relative or friend, even if there are other qualified candidates for the position. Nepotism at work refers to favoring relatives in employment or economic terms as opposed to them being judged on ability and/or merit in a specific organisation. This could include a position over somebody else who may be more suitable for the position, whereby the organization would be paying a relative more money than somebody doing the same job or granting them special favors. However, nepotism can be viewed in terms of people giving somebody a boost up to allow them to get into an organisation but will be treated in the same manner as everybody else. Although nepotism is in the sense of the word, refers to relatives, it can also Continue reading
Emotional Intelligence is more Important than Cognitive Intelligence
In real workplaces, people have to learn how to work in a group but the first thing that the individual should learn is how to control their emotions. Emotion is an influential factor in teamwork, cooperation and in the process of helping people. As workers perform their work within a good cooperation, they can build up the reputation of a corporate beside the ethical behavior of themselves. Normally individuals contribute necessary energy for organizational emotional intelligence. Sometimes, there will be a conflict among team member and this may slow down the process of work. If all individuals in the group can each control their emotion, this situation will not happen. That is why emotional intelligence is very important than cognitive intelligence. Individual that can manage their emotion well are categories as a high emotional intelligence’s people. Individuals with high emotional intelligence level are more likely to attend the daily work Continue reading