work balance of employee woman garment industry final project -

A Study On The Work-Life Balance Among Women Employees In Garment Industry

1. INTRODUCTION

Work life balance is about people having a measure of control over when, where and how they

work. It is achieved when an individual’s right to a fulfilled life inside and outside paid work is

accepted and respected as the norm, to the mutual benefit of the individual, business and

society.

In his book “managing Work-Life Balance”, David Clutter buck defines work-life as:

Being aware of different demands on time and energy

Having the ability to make choices in the allocation of time and energy

Knowing what values to apply to choices

Making choices

The term ‘Work-Life Balance’ was first coined in 1986 in reaction to the unhealthy choices that

many Americans were making in favor of the work place, as they opted to neglect family,

friends and leisure activities in pursuit of corporate goals.

Work-Life balance is a person’s control over the conditions in their workplace. It is

accomplished when an individual feels dually satisfied about their personal life and their paid

occupation. It mutually benefits the individual, business and society when a person’s personal

life is balanced with his or her own job.

The Work-life balance strategy offers a variety of means to reduce stress levels and increase

job satisfaction in the employee while enhancing business benefits for the employer. In our

increasingly hectic world, the work-life strategy seeks to find a balance between work and play.

Al Ameen Institute of Management Studies


A sentence that brings the idea of work life balance to the point is:”Work to live, don’t live to

work”.

The best individual work-life balance varies over time, often on a daily basis. The right balance

for a person today will probably be different for him/her tomorrow – the right balance for a

person when he/ she is single will be different when he/she gets married or he/she becomes a

parent; when he/ she starts a new career verses when he/she is nearing retirement. The best

work-life balance is different for each one of us because we all have different priorities and

different lives.

HISTORY- TRAIL AND ERROR

During the 1960s and 1970s, employers considered work-life mainly an issue for working

another’s who struggled with the demands of their jobs and raising children throughout this

period and into the mid-1980s,the U.S. government had the major impact in the field, as

reflected by the presidential conference on families, the pregnancy discrimination act(1978),

and the quality of employment survey(1977).

During the 1980s, recognizing the value and needs of their women contributors, pioneering

organizations such as Merck, Deloitte and Touche ,IBM etc. began to change their internal

workplace policies, procedures, and benefits.-2-the changes included maternity leaves,

employee assistance programs(EAPs),flextime, home-based work and child-care referral.

During the 1980s men also began voicing work-life concerns. By the end of the decade, work-

life balance was seen as more than just a woman’s issue, affecting men, families, and

organizations and cultures.

The 1990s solidified the recognition of work-life balance as a vital issue for everyone Women,

men, parents and non-parents, singles, and couples. This growing awareness of the central



importance of the issue resulted in major growth in attempted work-life solutions during this

decade. Numerous studies showed that the generations from baby to boomers to new college

graduates were making job choices based on their own-work life issues and Employers’

cultures.

Unfortunately, although companies were adopting family friendly policies, employees and

managers were not implementing them. Many of the policies put into the place in the 1980’s

failed to have a significant impact on most managers and employees real world work-life

balance results.

During the first years of twenty first century, the disappointing results made human resources

and work-life professionals as well as executives at all levels take stock. Karol Rose, author of

the published book “Work-Life Strategies”, comments on these trends in fortune magazine’s

third annual work life special feature included in the October 2005 issue. She noted that the

work life leadership council of the conference Board (founded in 1983), a gathering of high level

corporate HR and work life balance professionals drew these conclusion on looking back over

the last decade of efforts among their main concerns were:

Work life business cases have not achieved their intended effect.

Stress, over work, and their negative impact on productivity and health care costs are

real and growing.

Competition for talent from all levels and ages will increase.

Some of the solutions proposed by the work life council included:

Draw from different organizations and departments representing different perspectives

to identify key work life issues, the next big thing “and the future best practices”.

Identify the new trends which might not be visible now, and develop strategic

responses.



Create a new language for the work life field

Maximize the beneficiaries of work life efforts.

GLOBAL PERCEPTION

Over the past twenty-five years, there has been a substantial increase in work which is felt to

be due, in part, by information technology and by an intense, competitive work environment.

Long-term loyalty and a "sense of corporate community" have been eroded by a performance

culture that expects more and more from their employees yet offers little security in return.

Many experts forecasted that technology would eliminate most household chores and provide

people with much more time to enjoy leisure activities; unfortunately, many have decided to

ignore this option being "egged on" by a consumerist culture and a political agenda that has

"elevated the work ethic to unprecedented heights and thereby reinforced the low value and

worth attached to parenting".

In her recent book, "Willing Slaves – How the Overwork Culture is Ruling our Lives", Madeleine

Bunting stated that from 1977 to 1997 Americans working full time have increased their

average working hours from 43.6 hours to 47.1 hours each week. (This does not include time

required to travel to and from their places of business).

Many Americans are experiencing burnout due to overwork and increased stress. This

condition is seen in nearly all occupations from blue collar workers to upper management. Over

the past decade, a rise in workplace violence, an increase in levels of absenteeism as well as

rising workers’ compensation claims are all evidence of an unhealthy work life balance.

Employee assistance professionals say there are many causes for this situation ranging from

personal ambition and the pressure of family obligations to the accelerating pace of technology.



According to a recent study for the Center for Work-Life Policy, 1.7 million people consider their

jobs and their work hours excessive because of globalization.

These difficult and exhausting conditions are having adverse effects. According to the study,

fifty percent of top corporate executives are leaving their current positions. Although sixty-four

percent of workers feel that their work pressures are "self-inflicted", they state that it is taking a

toll on them. The study shows that, nationally, seventy percent, and globally, eighty-one

percent, say their jobs are affecting their health.

Between forty-six and fifty-nine percent of workers feel that stress is affecting their

interpersonal and sexual relationships. Additionally, men feel that there is a certain stigma

associated with saying "I can't do this".

APPROACHES TOWARDS WORK –LIFE BALANCE

Until recently, most organizations have taken a one-sided “systems” approach to their work-life

efforts. Their focus has been on adopting organization policies, benefits, and procedures to

solve the work-life-balance problem. Although helpful, than it is an organization the system

approach overlooks a critical fact: at its core, work-life balance is more an individual issue that

affects the organizational issue that affects the individual.

The system approach asks – “What can the organization do to create a better work-life balance

for the individual?” the other half of the work-life strategy, the individual approach, asks – “What

can individual employees and managers do for themselves to create their own best work-life

balance?”

The correlation between the two approaches is mentioned below:

Systems approach (left leg of work-life ladder)



The systems approach is the left leg of the ladder. If an organization is like most, then a fairly

solid left leg is already built – health insurance, vacation time, various benefits, and possibly

EAP or education programs or flexible work policies. It is important to reinforce what is already

in place, but it may also be valuable to implement some creative, potentially quick-hit

opportunities that have proven to have a high impact in is recommended and implement

certain organizations.

Anything that is recommended and implemented must be consistent with the business

objectives of the organization.

“A one-Legged Ladder Won’t Stand Up approach will not stand by itself.” –Even with the most

comprehensive programs, the systems approach will be difficult to climb upto the retention,

morale, and revenue rungs as targeted to achieve.

Individual approach (right leg of work–life ladder)

Individual approach is:”what has the individual done for him or herself to create their own best

work-life balance?” the lack of a supporting right-leg strategy is why most organizations have

failed to achieve the work-life results they desire.

The right leg is essential because the best work-life balance is different for everyone. The best

work-life balance for one is different from that for one’s co-worker, or boss or neighbor. For

some, working long hours creates value and balance in lives. For others, it is not a routine they

can productively or enjoyably maintain.

In addition, the best work-life balance changes for each individual over time. A good work-life

balance for someone starting his or her career is different from that for someone getting ready

to retire. A good work-life balance for someone who is single with no children is different from

that for a single parent with two children. One’s own best work-life balance will change, often



on a daily basis. As a result, one’s company or organization cannot create the best work-life

balance for him/her. As individuals, we must find and create it for ourselves.



BENEFITS OF IMPROVING WORK-LIFE BALANCE

From time to time, it has been established that good Work-Life balance brings in a lot of

benefits to the employer as well as the employee. Some of these are discussed below:

Aiding employee recruitment and retention.

Reducing absenteeism.

Improving the quality of peoples working lives.

Matching people who wouldn’t otherwise work with jobs.

Benefiting families and communities

Aiding employee recruitment and retention

More employees may stay on in a job, return after a break or take a job with one company over

another if they can match their other needs better with those of their paid work.

This results in savings for the employer-avoiding the cost of losing an experienced worker and

recruiting someone new.

Employers who support their staff in this way often gain the bonus of loyalty from those staff.

The British work-life balance study 2000, including a representative survey of 2500 workplaces,

found that 58 per cent of employers thought that work-life balance practices had improved staff

motivation and commitment, and 52 per cent thought labor turnover and absenteeism were

lower, and at that they helped retain female employees the Australian 2002 benchmarking

study found the organizations implementing work-life strategies and evaluating them observed

reduced turnover, absenteeism, and increased return from parental leave.

Reducing absenteeism

Many companies that have introduced family-friendly or flexible working practices have seen

benefits through reduction in absenteeism. Sickness rates may fail as pressures are managed



better, while employees may have better methods of dealing with work-life conflicts than taking

unplanned leave.

Workers (including their managers) who are healthy and not over-stressed may be

more efficient.

Improving the quality of people’s working lives.

Minimizing work-life role conflict can help prevent.

PERSPECTIVES RELATING WORK AND FAMILY

Zedeck (1992) described the following three perspectives which explain the relationship

between work and family.

a) The effect of work on family: this area examines what impact work factors have on

family matters. To express this relationship in terms of research design, work is regarded as

the independent variable, and family is dependent variable. This perspective is most typical of

psychological research. A common finding is that aspects of work (such as job stress and work

schedules) have negative effects on families.

b) The effect of family on work: this perspective is the opposite of the former and

generally focuses on how structural or developmental aspects of the family have an impact on

work behavior. For example, some researchers have viewed family life as “shock absorber” in

that, it blocks disappointment at work. Others view family responsibility as major determinant of

work absenteeism and tardiness.

c) The family-work interaction: this third perspective views work and family as interating

and concludes that there is no simple or direct casual link between work and family matters.

One view of the family-work interaction concerns the compatibility or incompatibility of family-

work relationships and their impact on other processes, such as the transition between roles.

MODELS OF WORK- FAMILY RELATIONSHIP



Zedeck and Mosier (1990) and most recently O’Driscoll (1996) note that there are typically five

main models used to explain the relationship between work and life outside work.

a) Spillover model: the spillover model asserts that there is similarity between what

occurs in the work environment and what occurs in the family environment. It also proposes

that a person’s work experiences influence what he or she does away from work. It is assumed

that attitudes at work become ingrained and carried over into home life, affecting a basic

orientation toward the self and family members. In general, spillover is a notion of positive

relationships. Between work and family variables such that an individual’s satisfaction with work

enhances family life.

b) Compensation model: the compensation model is most often contrasted with the

spillover model. It proposes an inverse relationship between work and family. It further

assumes that individual make differential investments of themselves in the two settings so that

what is provided by one makes up for what is missing in the other. Thus, deprivations

experienced in work are made up or compensated for in non-work activities. For example work

may be routine and undemanding but this is compensated for by a major role in local

community activities outside work.

c) Segmentation model: the segmentation model proposes that the work and non-work

spheres are distinct so that an individual can be successful in one without any influence on

other. The two spheres exist side by side and for all practical purposes are separated from

each other. This separated from each other. This separation, in type, space, or function, allows

one to effectively compartmentalize one’s life. The dominant view is that the family is the realm

of intimacy and empathy, whereas the work world is impersonal and instrumental.

d) Instrumental model: in an instrumental model, activities in one sphere facilitatae

success in the other. The traditional example is the instrumental worker who will seek to

maximize earnings, even at the price of undertaking a routine job and working long hours, to

allow the purchase of a home or a car for a young family.



e) Conflict model: The final model is the conflict model which proposes that with high

levels of demand in all spheres of life, some difficult choices have to be made and some

conflicts and possibly some significantly overload on an individual occur.

Recently interest has been focused in particular on the conflict model, especially in dual career

families, although research on the spillover and compensation models continues to be widely

reported.



2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND RESEARCH DESIGN

2.1 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

A literature review is a body of text that aims to review the critical points of current knowledge

on a particular topic. A literature review usually precedes a research proposal, methodology

and results section. Its ultimate goal is to bring the reader up to date with current literature on a

topic and forms the basis for another goal, such as the justification for future research in the

area.

Work and family research in IO/OB (1980–2002)

This monograph reviews 190 work–family studies published in IO/OB journals from 1980 to

2002. The results of a content analysis are presented which catalog these articles with respect

to the study focus, nature and direction of the proposed effects, and predictor, criterion, and

mediator variables examined. Then a narrative review of the articles is presented, organized in

terms of the following topical areas: (1) work–family conflict, (2) work role stress, (3) work–

family assistance, (4) work schedules, (5) job-related relocation, (6) career and job-related

outcomes, (7) gender and the relationship between work and family domains, (8) dual-earner

couples, and (9) relationships among life domains. The review concludes with a discussion of

recurring themes in the literature and the identification of blind spots in the IO/OB perspective

on work and family.

Convergence between measures of work-to-family and family-to-work conflict: A meta-

analytic examination

The overlap between measures of work-to-family (WFC) and family-to-work conflict (FWC) was

meta-analytically investigated. Researchers have assumed WFC and FWC to be distinct;



however, this assumption requires empirical verification. Across 25 independent samples (total

N = 9079)

The sample size weighted mean observed correlation was .38 and the reliability corrected

correlation was .48. The pattern of external correlates for the two types of conflict was also

examined. Both forms of conflict had similar (.41) reliability corrected correlations with

measures of organizational withdrawal. WFC conflict correlated .41 (k = 15, N = 4714) with job

stressors and .17 (k = 13, N = 3312) with non-work stressors whereas FWC conflict

correlated .27 with job stressors and .23 with non-work stressors. Correlations between the two

forms of work/family conflict and other variables such as organizational commitment, job and

life satisfaction, and health were examined. Implications for the discriminate validity of the two

types of conflict measures are discussed.

Work-life balance: an exploratory study of supports and barriers in a construction

project

An exploratory study of supports and barriers in a construction project. The purpose of this

paper is to explore employees' perceptions of work-life balance (WLB) in an Australian

infrastructure construction project, using semi-structured focus groups. In total, 43 employees

participated in the focus groups, representing 50 per cent of the project workforce at the time.

Focus groups explored employees' experiences of WLB during the planning and design stage

of the project, as well as their expectations for the management of WLB during the construction

phase. Project culture, project resourcing and the schedule demands of the construction stage

of the project were identified as barriers for WLB, while participants believed that the “project

alliance” delivery model, flexibility of working hours and the project management team's

support for WLB would facilitate WLB in the project. Data were collected from one case study

project which utilized an alliance delivery model. Therefore, the results cannot be generalized

to the construction industry as a whole or to construction projects utilizing an alliance delivery

model. Data were collected from professional and white collar workers therefore the results



cannot be generalized to blue collar workers. The research findings suggest new directions for

future research in WLB related to project settings.

Action research to develop work-life balance in a UK university

This paper aims to show the extent to which an action research approach, which incorporates

learning from previous studies and interventions, can be used to progress work-life balance

(WLB) policies and practices in a university context. The paper builds on the now considerable

knowledge relating to the theory and practice of WLB. It adopts an action research/change

management approach as part of a project partly funded by the Department for Trade and

Industry partnership scheme. Specific methods utilized include a fundamental review of

organizational policy using an evaluative matrix and an analysis of the outcomes of four

workshops with 51 line managers. The findings show considerable differences between the

experiences of administrative, professional, technical and clerical (APT&C) staff and

academics. In particular, APT&C staffs seek a greater sense of “entitlement” and more trust

and autonomy, whereas academic staffs seek a more manageable work load. By moving

through the stages of the action research cycle, many of the limitations associated with past

WLB initiatives can be overcome for APT&C staff. By comparison, universities' disinclination to

tackle academic work intensification is best explained by the lack of labour market pressure to

do so and the fact that sustainable WLB does not constitute part of the “table stakes” of

academic employment. The paper presents theoretical models, together with practical

approaches for embedding WLB into organizational cultures. It also offers theoretical

explanations for employers' predisposition to adopt WLB change programmes.

What work? What life? What balance? Critical reflections on the work-life balance

debate



The purpose of this article is to initiate critical reflection on the assumptions and evidence

Underpinning the work-life balance debate. The article reviews a range of international

literature focused on and related to the work-life balance debate and issues.

In the work-life balance debate, over-work is perceived as the problem. Nevertheless

beyond working time and the provision of flexible working practices to enable child care, there

is little in the debate about the need to change work per se. The debate also narrowly

perceives “life”, equating it with women's care work, hence the emphasis again of family-

friendly policies. The article suggests that reconceptualisation is required in analyses of both

work-life balance and the relationship between work and life. The article implies that current

work-life balance policies are myopic in terms of addressing the needs and aspirations of

employees.

A comparative analysis of the use of work-life balance practices in Europe: Do practices

enhance females’ career advancement

A comparative descriptive analysis shows differences in work-life balance practices and

policies and women's participation in the workforce between countries. In order to test whether

work-life balance practices and policies enhance the career advancement of women to senior

management positions a multiple regression analysis is performed. The objectives of this study

are: to identify and compare companies' involvement with work-life balance practices and

policies in 14 European countries and to test whether these practices actually enhance the

career advancement of women to senior management positions. There are certain differences

in the provision of work-life balance practices and women's participation in the labour force

among European companies. A positive influence of work-life balance policies and practices on

women's career advancement into senior management positions was confirmed in only one

case – the payment of an additional amount for maternity leave. All other practices were shown

to have no significant impact or a significant negative relationship. An interesting issue is



whether work-life balance practices and policies help remove the glass ceiling. There has been

little research on the impact of work-life balance practices and policies on women's career

advancement. This study attempts to redress this dearth by examining the role of work-life

balance practices and policies on women's career advancement.

Work-life balance: contrasting managers and workers in an MNC

Although the bulk of the company's work-life balance initiatives focus on the managers, and the

managers display greater loyalty to the company, the workers are better able to achieve work

life balance. Neither group displays a more positive attitude to their work; however, the

managers focus more on achieving status and the workers on personal satisfaction. The

purpose of this article is to compare and contrast the workers and managers of an Anglo

German MNC, focusing on how each group attempts to maintain an acceptable work-life

balance. The findings challenge assertions that “flexible” working practices are good for work

life balance, that managers are better able to maintain a good work-life balance than

workers,and that the development of an appropriate work-life balance policy assists in ensuring

company loyalty and positive attitudes to work.



Achievements and Challenges for Work/Life Balance Strategies in Australian

Organizations

Using data from surveys conducted in Australian organizations in 1997, 1998, and 2000, this

publication examines. The extent, usage, and barriers to work-life balance strategies. The

findings indicate that common work-life balance strategies in Australian organizations include

part-time work, flexible work schedules, job sharing, and telecommuting. Shows that these

strategies are not available to all employees in over half of the organizations studied and work-

life balance strategies are used by fewer than twenty percent of employees in half of the

organizations in the sample. Demands at work, ineffective communication, lack of evaluation,

and negative workplace cultures are identified barriers to using work-life balance strategies.

CTU Conference Paper on Work-Life Balance

This paper draws together the experiences of unions from internal discussion and areas of the

CTU's existing work programme relating to aspects of work-life balance. This includes work on

reviews of the Employment Relations Act, paid parental leave and minimum wages,

submissions on the Holidays Bill and Holidays (Four Week's Annual Leave) Amendment Bill,

and participation in the Pay and Employment Equity Taskforce. This paper identifies that the

concerns of unions concentrate in six areas of work-life balance: 1. Modes of employment;

2. Hours of work; 3. Leave entitlements; 4. Pay; 5. Workplace culture; 6. Individuals' life, family

and community participation. The challenges of developing concrete actions that will improve

work-life balance in these areas demand a broad range of responses from a range of players.

The Government, employers, unions and the community all have a role. The Government has a

role in leading by example as an employer, regulator and funder. Employers have an interest in

the business benefits of work-life balance such as increased staff retention, reduced

absenteeism, a better recruitment pool, increased staff loyalty, morale and job satisfaction, and

improved public image. Unions on the other hand can take leadership through collective

bargaining and advocating for improvements to the minimum code on behalf of members.



Nevertheless, it is also recognized that a core element of improving work-life balance is

changing the entrenched values and culture of workplaces.

Balancing Work and Family: The Role of High-Commitment Environments

Recently, researchers have begun to recognize that the nature of jobs, the workplace

environment, and more generally, the culture of the workplace can have a significant impact on

the ability of workers to balance their work and family lives. This article examines the effect of

high-performance work practices, job characteristics, and the work environment on workers'

views about whether the company helps them balance work and family. Using data from a

survey of workers across three manufacturing industries, we show that a high-commitment

environment characterized by high-performance work practices, intrinsically rewarding jobs,

and understanding supervisors positively influences employees' perceptions that the company

is helping them achieve this balance. This article reinforces the view that helping workers

balance work and family responsibilities is not just a matter of benefits and formal family-

friendly policies. Rather, it also depends on the characteristics of jobs within the business

enterprise.

IBM Global Work/Life Survey (2003)

At IBM, first Work/Life Issues Survey was conducted in 1986. The survey provided information

about the effectiveness of existing programs and suggestions for future programs. Surveys

were repeated in 1991 and 1996 in the United States, 1998 in Europe and Latin America, and

1999 in our Asia-Pacific region. In 2001, the first IBM Global Work/Life Survey was conducted.

This was the largest, most complex single-focused work/life survey by any corporate,

academic, or government entity, which was conducted in 20 languages and 48 countries. More

than 25,000 employees took the survey, which yielded a 44% participation rate, and provided

us with 59,000 written comments from employees.



Through the global survey we also learned that many IBMers around the globe have significant

work/life care responsibilities - 69% care for dependents (either children, elders, or both); 54%

care for children; 30% care for elders or other adult dependents; 15% care for both children

and elders or other adult dependents. And also learned that around the world, employees were

struggling with how to balance their work and family lives.

In addition, our work/life programs are strongly linked with IBM’s ability to motivate and retain

the best talent in our industry. Employees report they have greater job satisfaction, are more

optimistic about the company’s future, put in more work-related hours and indicate that work/life

issues would be the first or second reason for potentially leaving IBM.

IBM’s work/life programs are constructed to allow employees to be productive, serve our

customers and meet their personal and family needs. Our strategy is divided into three parts:

Refine and reform IBM’s work/life culture.

Respond to employee needs for expanded flexibility in working hours and work

delivery.

Support employees’ needs for Child/Elder care assistance.



While IBM’s work/life programs benefit all employees, they are especially important to women,

who typically have greater need for flexibility and responsibilities for dependent care. Part of

IBM’s focus over the years has been to create both an environment and leading industry

programs that appeal to the needs of women employees so that IBM can continuously attract

and retain key talent from this important constituency.

Another outgrowth of our work/life strategy is the IBM Global Work/Life Fund. In 1998, IBM

began evaluating the global need for dependent care and conducted a series of Dependent

Care Assessments in 20 countries to determine the course of action for each IBM region. As a

result of that work, in 2001, the Global Work/Life Fund (GWLF) was developed, which is a

$50M fund to be invested over the years 2001-2005.

The GWLF is designed to address the dependent care and work life needs of IBM employees

worldwide. Year-to-date, IBM has had active child care and elder projects in 18 countries, in

other words, to support work/life programs in communities where its employees live and work -

- one of the first funds of its type to address such employee issues globally. Sixty percent of the

fund is earmarked for programs outside the United States. Although the fund will address a

variety of work/life issues, the primary focus will be dependent care programs that help

employees and their communities respond to the child and elder care responsibilities of

working families.

There are still some who believe work/life is a U.S. phenomenon and that U.S.-based

corporations are pushing their issues overseas. The work IBM has undertaken clearly tells

another story. You will see IBM respond to employee needs globally - - through increasing the

quality of care in a center in the Philippines, providing elder care seminars to employees in Italy

and Canada, introducing children in China to new computers, building a childcare center in

Ireland and Korea, or expanding existing care in Mexico.



All of our 316,000 employees around the world are facing work/life challenges. And, IBM is

using the knowledge gained from 30 years of experience to help design programs and

initiatives that work for their lifestyles, no matter where they are located around the world.

TELECOMMUTER WORK/LIFE BALANCE SURVEY

Telecommuting suggests that one positive outcome of a telecommuting work arrangement is

the benefit of being able to better balance work and personal life (Jensen, 1994; Duxbury,

Higgins, & Neufield, 1998; Smith & Reid, 1996). However, other research has contradicted this

argument stating that telecommuting blurs the boundaries between work and home life (Jones,

1997; Riley & McClosky, 1997). This study did not find any significant differences between

telecommuters and non-telecommuters in terms of work/life balance. .

Interestingly, the results of this research did reveal that a curvilinear relationship exists between

work/life balance and telecommuting frequency. Specifically, part-time telecommuters scored

significantly lower on the work/life balance measure than telecommuters and non-

telecommuters who scored similarly. Through controlling telecommuting frequency, this study is

able to provide important insight into the relationship between work/life balance and

telecommuting. As telecommuting frequency increases from less than one day a month, to

several times a month, to part-time, work/life balance continues to incrementally decline. After

which, work/life balance scores increase incrementally as telecommuting frequency progresses

from part-time, to full-time, to work only from home. .

Based on this relationship, it seems that part-time telecommuters may possibly have the lowest

work/life balance scores because they are just unable to multi-task in multiple locations. One

may speculate that these individuals are experiencing greater stress and conflict do to their

inability to divide their time and workload between work locations and juggle their role as a



telecommuter, an office worker, caregiver, and homemaker. .

While this study did suggest that part-timers scored the lowest on the work/life balance

measure, there are several factors that may have contributed to this finding. For this sample,

compared to full-time telecommuters, part-time telecommuters were less likely to have a

spouse/caregiver at home to watch the children during work hours and were less likely to have

a productive home work environment (i.e., more non-work interruptions & a less favorable

designated work area). In addition, part-time telecommuters scored significantly lower on

conscientiousness than full-time telecommuters, yet conscientiousness was a significant

predictor of work/life balance only for part-timers. This finding suggests that conscientiousness

is key to the success of this juggling between work locations for the part-time telecommuter

group .

Consequently, for this part-time telecommuter group, certain safeguards should be in place in

order to ensure a productive work environment and successful work/life balance. Part-time

telecommuters must abandon the belief that they are capable of completing their work while

taking care of their children. In order to fulfill their job obligations and maintain balance in their

lives, part-time telecommuters must also have someone to watch the children while they work

from home and the home work environment should be free of non-work interruptions. A

designated room within the house with a door was found to be a fundamental factor in

determining work/life balance for this part-time telecommuter group.

The Positive Influence of Perceived Job Flexibility on Work and Family Life Balance

This study examines the influence of perceived flexibility in the timing and location of work on

work-family balance. Data are from a 1996 International Business Machines (IBM) work and life

issues survey in the United States (n = 6,451). Results indicate that perceived job flexibility is

related to improved work-family balance after controlling for paid work hours, unpaid domestic



labor hours, gender, marital status, and occupational level. Perceived job flexibility appears to

be beneficial both to individuals and to businesses. Given the same workload, individuals with

perceived job flexibility have more favorable work-family balance. Likewise, employees with

perceived job flexibility are able to work longer hours before workload negatively impacts their

work-family balance. Implications of these findings are presented.

When it’s Work and Not Life……

In the pursuit of increasing productivity and improving employee morale in the workplace,

organizations are evolving a new psychological contract with employees. One which goes

beyond the traditional boundaries of work and recognizes the employees’ larger familial and

social needs, while also acknowledging trends in the environment – more working women,

longer commuting time, work-related stress and so on.

When one introduces policies to encourage more women to join the workforce however, do

they end with a measurable increase of women in the workforce or should they develop

beyond? Work-Life Balance policies evolved from Family Friendly policies whose focus was

largely working mothers. This study seeks to understand the development of Work-Life Balance

policies in the UK and its impact on employers and employees. It also explores how Indian

organizations are responding to the concept of Work-Life Balance.

The study reinforces what has already been established – that the impact of Work-Life Balance

policies on employers and employees has been extremely positive. However, while the term

Work-Life Balance is more encompassing and inclusive than Family Friendly and much

progress has been made in the UK, this study indicates that in reality the policies have not

shifted much in focus beyond the working parents of young children. Not only are there groups

of employees like the unmarried or older employees who do not benefit much from these

policies, but there are also groups of employees who have needs beyond parenting.



Organizations’ must therefore take stock of changing social, environmental and business

realities while developing policies for their employees – a ‘one-size fits all’ approach will not

work. A commitment to Work-Life Balance policies for a diverse workforce must be a stated

organizational policy and have the buy-in of the senior management and trade unions. One of

the greatest challenges facing employers is in the implementation and management of Work-

Life Balance policies. The role of the Manager (one of the bottlenecks in successful

implementation) in making Work-Life Balance policies a reality and in ensuring that a culture of

flexibility permeates the organization is critical. To make the campaign for Work-Life Balance

policies a wider and more meaningful national movement requires the support of the

Government (through legislation), professional bodies for advocacy and research and industry.



2.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Today’s diverse workplace is increasingly populated with women, single parents and dual-

career couples. The potential for conflict and stress increases as most workers struggle with

the demands of balancing paid employment and home responsibilities this has led to problems

both on the professional( example-attrition, job-related stress, low productivity,etc.) as well as

the personal (example-stress, broken relationships, etc)front.

2.3 SCOPE FOR THE STUDY

The achievement of a balance between work and life/family responsibilities is essential for the

overall wellbeing of all employees and the effective operation of workplaces.

The demand for Work-Life Balance solutions by employees and employers is expanding at an

unprecedented rate. Over the coming years it will be one of the most important issues that

executives and human resource professionals will be expected to manage.

2.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

To find the significance of Work-Life Balance from employee’s perspective.

To measure the balance between work-life and personal-life.

To find out the effect of stress on work and personal-life.

To measure the imbalance between the work and family-life.



2.5 HYPOTHESIS OF THE STUDY

Hypothesis is a tentative proposition formulated for empirical testing. It is a declarative

statement combing concepts. It is a tentative answer to a research question. It is tentative,

because it can be evaluated only after its veracity has been tested empirically.

Hypothesis of the study

There is significant relationship between the effect of stress on work of the

respondents and the work-life balance

There is significant relationship between the imbalance between the work and family

life of the respondents and work-life balance

2.6 OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF CONCEPT

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Work-Life balance: David Clutter buck defines work-life balance as:

Being aware of different demands on time and energy.

Having the ability to make choices in the allocation of time and energy.

Knowing what values to apply to choices.

Making choices.

In this research, the research has mainly focused on the employee’s perspective of Work-Life

Balance and its benefits.



2.7 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research is a process through which we attempt to achieve systematically and with the support

of data the answer to a question, the resolution of a problem, or a greater understanding of a

phenomenon.

The core concept underlying all research is its methodology. It is not enough to follow the

research procedures without an intimate understanding that research methodology directs the

whole endeavor –where critical decisions are made and where organizing, planning and

directing the whole project take place. The methodology controls the study, dictates the

acquisition of the data, and arranges them in logical relationships. Sets up a means of refining

the raw data, contrives an approach so that the meanings they lie below the surface of those

data become manifest, and finally issues a conclusion or series of conclusions that lead to an

expansion of knowledge. The entire process is an unfiled effort as well as an appreciation of its

component parts. Thus, research methodology has two primary functions:

1. To control and dictate the acquisition of data.

2. To corral the data after acquisition and extract meaningfulness from them.

2.8 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

Being a study of 50 employees, the findings of this study cannot be generalized to all working

population.

The responses given by the respondents may be biased.

2.9 CHAPTER SCHEME



CHAPTER – 1 Introduction:- This chapter deals with the introduction, theoretical background,

industrial background.

CHAPTER – 2 Review of literature and Design of the Study :- This chapter deals with

review of literature, objectives of the study, scope of study, statement of the problem, operation

definition and concept techniques, tools for data collection and plan of analysis

CHAPTER – 3 Profile of the Industry:- This chapter deals with the profile of the industrial

background, origin with respect to growth and development of the industry.

CHAPTER – 4 Results, Analysis and Discussions:- This chapter deals with the analysis

and interpretation of data collected from respondents with respect to their satisfaction, each

part is dedicated to the objectives of the study.

CHAPTER – 5 Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Suggestions:- This chapter contains

summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations.

3. INDUSTRY PROFILE



Indian Garment Industry- an Overview

The garment industry is one of India's largest foreign exchange earners, accounting

for nearly 16% of the country's total exports. The 1996 Indian textile exports approximately

amounted to Rs.35, 000 crores of which apparel occupied over Rs14, 000 crores.

It has been estimated that India has approximately 30,000 readymade garment-

manufacturing units and around three million people are working in the industry. Today not only

is the garment export business growing, enthusiasm in the minds of the foreign buyers is also

at a high. Today many leading fashion labels are being associated with Indian products. India is

increasingly being looked upon as a major supplier of high quality fashion apparels and Indian

apparels have come to be appreciated in major markets internationally. The credit for this goes

to our exporter community.

Consistent efforts towards extensive market coverage, improving technical capabilities

and putting together an attractive and wide merchandise line have paid rich dividends. But till

today, our clothing industry is dominated by sub-contractors and consists mainly of small units

of 50 to 60 machines. India's supply base is medium quality, relatively high fashion, but small

volume business.

Recent recession in Europe and the South Asian currency crisis has also contributed

their own bits to the decimating Indian exports. Though these are expected to fizzle out soon,

there is no reason for complacency on the part of Indian exporters or of the garment industry.

The industry will be soon faced with open competition shorn of quotas or tariffs.

Thus the need of the hour is to enlarge both manufacturing as well as the marketing

base. Inculcation of a spirit of innovation by way of research and development and tapping new

markets especially in South Africa, Central Africa, CIS, East European countries, Latin America

and Australia is also mandatory for export growth.



Structure of the Garment Industry

The garment industry is one of India's largest foreign exchange earners, accounting for

12% of the country's total exports. Garment manufacturing is one of the most fragmented

sectors of the Indian textile industry.

The garment industry comprises manufacturers of ready-made garments for either the

domestic or export markets or, in certain cases, both. The constituents of this segment are very

diverse in terms of their size, production facility, the type of apparel manufactured, the quality of

output, fabric requirement, price sensitivity etc.

The segment is extremely fragmented, with an estimated 27,000 domestic

manufacturers, 48,000 fabricators (job contractors) and around 1000 manufacturer-exporters.

The break-up of the apparel sector by scale of operations is shown below:

Ownership of the firms in the apparel industry, are by and large either proprietorship /

partnership. In the manufacturing base, fabricators dominate the scene with a share of 72% of

the estimated manufacturing capacity of 1.5 million machines.

Typically a so-called "large" garment manufacturer, producing under his own brand

and marketing it regionally or nationally, has a factory of about 20-25 machines, an annual

sales turnover of less than Rs. 1.05 crore (USD 3,00,000) and a total consumption of various

fabrics of 1 - 1.2 lac mts. per year. This scale itself was not achievable by most manufacturers

due to the underdeveloped marketing chain from fabrics through apparel to retail.

There are only handful companies with production capacities ranging from 50-100

sewing machines. However, these machines are installed in different areas / sheds, and are

often under separate company names. The share of manufacturers of this scale in the industry

remains low, even negligible.



Garment Exports From India

The welcome decision of phasing out Multi-fibre Agreement will end the regime of

quotas and will unleash "competition", overwhelming condition of playing in the global market.

Survival of the fittest shall become the rule of the game and the Indian clothing industry whose

supply base is medium quality and small volume business shall have to brace itself and go for

rapid modernization, timely delivery and broad basing its export basket and market.

For India the Clothing industry has performed quite well in exports. It has been filling

most of the quotas every year. As compared to Rs.12 crores in 1970-71, exports have reached

Rs.18, 000 crores by 1998. The major competitors in this segment of the market are developed

countries, Asian Tigers like Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore, developing countries

like Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia and neighboring countries like Bangladesh and

Mayanmar and China, of course.

In order to ensure quality of garment exports the SSI restriction of the garment industry

should be removed. Present equity participation of 24% by the foreign partners needs to be

enhanced and Joint Ventures with majority share holding as well as technical collaborations

should be allowed. Labour laws need a remodeling and liberalization.

A research, development and training institute focused on post garment processing like

washing dyeing etc. is also needed. Indian government should negotiate higher quotas from

USA / EEC in accordance with its sizes and capabilities. Stream lining Internal Quota

Administration and freezing minimum export prices is crucial for the future of the readymade

garment export industry.

The garment exports have grown at a very high rate of 13% over the last five years. In

spite of this high rate, the share of the garment exports in the overall textile basket has

decreased over the years.



Cotton forms the significant part of the garment exports from India. It accounts for

nearly 80% in terms of volume. Synthetics contribute to about 17% whereas the rest is

accounted by wool and silk.

Quality Control In Textile And Clothing Industries

Production of fibres in the world is expected to increase to 50 million tones in the year

2000. Scenario for textile and clothing industry is fast changing with Internet becoming a global

market place and increased consumer awareness. World seems to be shrinking, bringing down

trade barriers. Under these challenging market conditions effective quality systems have

emerged as a major thrust point.

Quality control is not a recent realization, though it has become paramount now. In the

past, techniques like Coal Tar distillation, Mercerization and Sanforization have led to quality

enhancement/ improvement. Now even flame proofing, anti-microbial, water and oil proofing

and several other properties can be obtained with new finishes. And with each finish came

specifications and special quality control parameters.

In 1970s and 80s readymade garments became the premier retail outlets for fabric.

This brought a revolution of sorts, expanding quality parameters from more dimensional

stability and colorfastness to garment appearance, feel & fall, construction, physical properties,

special finish and presentation.

Garment manufacturing and processing techniques have come a long way. Enzymes

in bio polishing, use of resins and subsequent curing in Garment forms are required to have

their own quality parameters. Specialty products of special end-uses also require their own set

of quality specifications. For example, defense textiles need rot proofing, children's wear should

be colorfast to saliva and garments for Arctic conditions require ability to withstand extreme

cold.



Based on end uses, specifications are even further categorized, like for school wear

tear strength is 700 g.: warp & weft. There are similar ranges in dimensional stability, steam

strength, abrasion resistance, seam slippage and other test descriptions for various clothing.

While improving on quality of textile ecological factor cannot be overlooked. Textile

industry uses many chemical pollutants, allergens & carcinogens. These have to be severely

restricted by laying down ecological requirements. Only limited use of various chemicals like

azo dyes, heavy metals, odour, etc should be permitted.

Textile industry also needs to address the problem of indiscriminate disposal of

wastewater loaded with toxic chemicals. Quality parameters & specifications in future will

revolutionize/ pervade/ define the whole ' life-cycle ' of a textile product.

The quality of a final product is as good as at the various levels of manufacturing. To

achieve consistency in quality it is necessary to define quality parameters. With this view, the

International Standards Organization (ISO) has published the standards series ISO 9000. In

the long run, good quality always pays.

4. RESULTS, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSIONS

Analysis and interpretation of the data collected from the organization is given below:

TABLE 5.1

Distribution by age

Sl.No Age(years) Frequency Percentage



1 Up to25 15 30%

2 26-30 27 54%

3 31-35 7 14%

4 36 and above 1 2%

Total 50 100%



GRAPHNO.5.1

Table 5.1 and chart 5.1 show more than one-fourth of the respondents are below the age of 25

years. Almost half of the respondents (54 percent) are between the age group of 26 and 30

years. Nearly one-seventh of the respondents (14 percent) come under the age group of 31 to

35 years. The least number of respondents (2 percent) come under the age group of 36 years

and above



TABLE 5.2

Distribution by work experience

Sl.No Experience(years) Frequency Percentage

1 Less than 1 9 18%

2 1-2 12 24%

3 2-3 15 30%

4 Above 4 14 28%



GRAPHNO.5.2

Table 5.2 and chart 5.2 show 18 percent of the respondents have less than 1 year of

experience. About 24 percent of the respondents have 1 to 2 years of work experience. Nearly

30 percent of the respondents have 2 to 3 years of work experience. Almost 28 percent of the

respondents have above 4 years of experience.



TABLE 5.3

Distribution by number of children

Sl.No No. of children Frequency Percentage

1 None 24 48%

2 One-two 16 32%

3 Not married 8 16%

4 More than two 1 2%

5 Blank 1 2%

Total 50 100%



GRAPHNO.5.3

Table 5.3 and chart 5.3 show that out of total married respondents 48 percent of the

respondents have no children’s and 32 percent of them have one to two children’s. Whereas 16

percent of respondents are not married and two percent of them have more than two children’s.



TABLE 5.4

Distribution of annual income

Sl.No

Annual income (in Rs.) Frequency Percentage

1 Below 20,000 13 26%

2 20-25,000 13 26%

3 25-30,000 4 8%

4 Above 30,000 20 40%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.4



Table 5.4 and chart 5.4 show that the annual income of half the respondent (40 percent) is

above 30,000 Rupees .The annual income for a little more than a quarter of the respondents

(26 percent) is below 20,000 and other quarter of the respondents (8 percent) are between 20

to 25,000 Rupees.



TABLE. 5.5

Distribution of time spent in traveling.

Sl.No Time (min) Frequency Percentage

1 Less than 30 33 66%

2 30-60 16 32%

3 More than 60 1 2%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.5



Table 5.5 and chart 5.5 shows that little less than two-third of the respondents (66 percent)

takes less than 30 minutes. Nearly two-fifth of the respondents (32 percent) and one percent of

the respondents take more than 60 minutes.



TABLE.5.6

Distribution of number of dependents.

Sl.No Response Frequency Percentage

1 None 9 18%

2 One or two 38 36%

3 More than two 2 4%

4 Blank 1 2%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.6



Table 5.6 and chart 5.6 show that number of dependents staying with the respondents 18

percent of responded as none, while 36 percent responded as one to two and 4 percent

responded as more than two and one percent of respondent left blank.



TABLE.5.7

Distribution of reasons for over time


1 Personal reason 10 20%

2 Financial reason 30 60%

3 Nature of job 9 18%

4 Others 1 2%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.7



Table 5.7 and chart 5.7 shows that 20 percent responded as personal reason, 60 percent of

them responded as financial reason, 18 percent responded as nature of job and rest 2 percent

of respondent responded as other reasons.



TABLE.5.8

Distribution of job affecting personal life of employee.


1 Strongly agree 25 50%

2 Agree 16 32%

3 Disagree 8 16%

4 Strongly disagree 1 2%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.8



Table 5.8 and chart 5.8 shows that 50 percent of respondent strongly agree that job is

affecting their personal life, 32 percent of respondent agree, while 16 percent of respondent

disagree and rest of 2 percent of respondent strongly disagree.



TABLE.5.9

Distribution of employee difficulty in balancing work-life and personal-life.


1 All the time 16 32%

2 Sometime 13 26%

3 Rarely 9 9%

4 Never 12 24%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.9



Table 5.9 and chart 5.9 shows that 32 percent of respondent responded that they find difficulty

in balancing work-life with the personal-life,26 percent of respondent find sometime, while 24

percent of respondent never found it difficult while 9 percent rarely find it difficult.



TABLE. 5.10

Distribution of employee feeling stressed.


1 All the time 5 10%

2 Sometime 26 52%

3 Rarely 4 8%

4 Never 15 30%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.10



Table 5.10 and chart 5.10 shows that 52 percent of respondent responded that they feel

stressed sometime, 30 percent of respondent responded never, while 10 percent of respondent

responded all the time while 8 percent responded as rarely.



TABLE. 5.11

Distribution of work related stress caused you to have an accident/ make

a serious error.



1 Always 3 6%

2 Sometime 17 34%

3 Rarely 16 32%

4 Never 14 28%

Total 50 100%


GRAPHNO.5.11

Table 5.11 and chart 5.11 shows that 34 percent of respondent responded that work related

stress caused employee to have an accident/ make a serious error sometime, 32 percent of

respondent responded as rarely, while 28 percent of respondent responded as never while 6

percent responded as always.



TABLE. 5.12

Distribution of journey to work.


1 Greatly add to the stress of your life. 8 16%

2 Add slightly to the stress of your day. 32 64%

3 Slightly reduce the stress of your day. 4 8%

4 Have no impact 6 12%

Total 50 100%



GRAPHNO.5.12

Table 5.12 and chart 5.12 shows that 64 percent of respondent responded that journey to work

add slightly to the stress of employee life, 16 percent of respondent responded as add greatly

to the stress of employees day, while 12 percent of respondent responded as have no impact

while 8 percent responded as slightly reduce the stress of employees day.



TABLE.5.13

Distribution of imbalance between your work and home-life.


1 Always 4 8%

2 Sometimes 20 40%

3 Rarely 15 30%

4 Never 11 22%

Total 50 100%



GRAPHNO.5.13

Table 5.13 and chart 5.13 shows that 40 percent of respondent responded that they sometimes

there is imbalance between their work and home-life, 30 percent of respondent responded as

rarely, while 22 percent of respondent responded as never and 8 percent responded as always.



TABLE.5.14

Distribution of imbalance due to poor staffing level.



2 Agree 25 50%

3 Disagree 7 14%

4

Strongly disagree 8 16%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.14



Table 5.14 and chart 5.14 shows that 50 percent of respondent responded that they agree that

it is due to poor staffing level, 20 percent of respondent responded as strongly agree, while 16

percent of respondent responded as strongly disagree and 14 percent responded as disagree.



TABLE.5.15

Distribution of imbalance due to home duties/family responsibility.



2 Agree 17 34%

3 Disagree 16 32%

4


Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.15




imbalance due to home duties/family responsibility,32 percent of respondent responded as

disagree, while 20 percent of respondent responded as strongly disagree and 14 percent

responded as strongly agree.



TABLE.5.16

Distribution of imbalance due to employee health.



2 Agree 20 40%

3 Disagree 7 14%

4


Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.16




imbalance due to employee health,36 percent of respondent responded as strongly agree,

while 14 percent of respondent responded as disagree and 10 percent responded as strongly

disagree.



TABLE.5.17

Distribution of imbalance due to desire to maintain certain

standard of living.



2 Agree 20 40%

3 Disagree 10 20%


Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.17




imbalance due to desire to maintain certain standard of living,22 percent of respondent

responded as strongly agree, while 20 percent of respondent responded as disagree and 18

percent responded as strongly disagree.



TABLE.5.18

Distribution of imbalance due to cost of living.



2 Agree 24 48%

3 Disagree 12 24%


Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.18




imbalance due to cost of living,24 percent of respondent responded as disagree, while 20

percent of respondent responded as strongly agree and 8 percent responded as strongly

disagree



TABLE.5.19

Distribution of working life out of control.


1 All the time 3 6%

2 Sometimes 20 40%

3 Rarely 15 30%

4 Never 12 24%

Total 50 100%

GRAPHNO.5.19



Table 5.19 and chart 5.19 shows that 40 percent of respondent responded that sometimes

they feel that working life is out of control,30 percent of respondents feel rarely, while 24

percent of respondents feel never and 6 percent respondents feel all the time.



5 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

5.1 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

Socio-economic profile of the respondents

A number of demographic and other variables capturing the characteristics of the employees

were gathered in order to examine their relation with Work-Life Balance including age, marital

status, household type such as presence of number of dependent children) etc.

Majority of the respondents are from the age group of 26 to 30 years whereas the least

number of respondents above the age 36 years.

The annual income of majority the respondents is above 30, 000 whereas between

Rs.25-30,000 for least respondents.

Majority of the respondent are married. Out of married respondents, majority has one

to two child and only 8 percent do not have any children.

Majority of the respondents spend less than 30 minutes in commuting to/from their

work place whereas least number of respondents spends more than 60 minutes.

The study reveals that 60% respondents feel that personal reason is reason for

overtime.

The study reveals that 50% of the respondents strongly agree that job affects their

personal life.

The study reveals that 32% of the respondents feel all the time difficulty in balancing

work-life and personal-life.

The study reveals that 52% of the respondent feel sometimes stressed.

The study reveals that 34% of the respondents feel work related stress cause them to

have accidents /make serious error.



The study reveals that 64% of the respondents feel journey to the work add slightly to

the stress of their day.

The study reveals that 40% of the respondents feel sometimes there is imbalance

between their work and home-life.

The study reveals that 50% of the respondents agree that there is imbalance in work-

life due to poor staffing level.


life due to home duties/family responsibility.


life due to employee health.


life due to desire to maintain certain standard of living.


life due to cost living.

The study reveals that 40% of the respondents feel that there sometimes work life is

out of control.

5.2 CONCLUSION



Work-Life Balance is of great importance to the daily life of the working population. Its impact is

significant for economic competitiveness and demographic development. For example, through

positively flexible working times, companies can offer women better possibilities of combing

work and family, which would promote women’s employability, in particular.

The achievement of a balance between work and life/family responsibilities is essential for the

overall wellbeing of all employees and the effective operation of workplaces. The results of this

survey reinforce the imperative for employers and employees in managing family and lifestyle

commitments. These policies should also allow all people to participate to their desired extent

in workforce, while ensuring that business for the organization can continue to operate

productively and efficiently.

5.3 SUGGESTIONS

Suggestion for the organization where the study was conducted



In addition to the existing to policies related to Work-Life Balance, other policies can be

introduced which can further improve Work-Life Balance in the organization. Employees have

suggested additional policies like bus facilities, house allowance, compliments (gifts), union

formation and travel allowance.

Suggestions for employers

There are a variety of tried and tested components to the work-life strategy. Foremost is

providing flexible working hours for the employees by the employers. Options should b given to

the employees such as having a compressed work week or job sharing. A compressed work

week involves working full time hours in week days in order to provide a longer week end and

more time for leisure activities. Job sharing involves two people splitting one job so adequate

support is given to each employee and responsibilities are balanced.

Another element of work life strategy is to have the company review the work life balance or

their employees on a regular basis. Employers can provide individual development plans for

employees or mentoring by colleagues in order to monitor progress and in satisfaction in the

work force. Guidelines to handle work problems professional as well as personal should also

be established so business and personal needs can be met. Adequate leave options should

also b provided to the employees. In addition to earn leave, sick leave and maternity leave,

leave should also be provided on special occasions.

Suggestions for employees

The most important parameter to achieve a good work life balance industry today is self

awareness of the employees towards the significance of work life balance as well as

organizations policies promoting the same.



Ignorance among employees regarding the concepts of work-life balance is an area of concern.

This ignorance in turn leads to non-awareness of the policies and family- friendly entitlements

that their employment arrangement provides.

Suggestions for HR personnel

It is the HR department which lays down most of the policies that define the work culture in an

organization. Therefore it is the bonus of the HR personnel to appreciate the significance of a

good work-life balance for the employees of the organization and design policies accordingly.

The key to success of any organization has always been linked to co-operation between

management and its employees. Instead of approaching Work-Life Balance as a benefit

handed out to those with deserving special circumstances, the focus should be on designing

employee friendly policies that promote a healthy Work-Life Balance culture within the

organization.

5.4 POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND SCOPE OF FURTHER STUDY

As the resources were limited and as well as time constraints, a study only on work-life balance

among women employee in garments industry was done. There is further scope to study other

industries like BPO, Telecom, Hotels and Healthcare which functions 24/7 and requires

rotational shift to work.



The study can be conducted for men employee in the garment industry as well as other

industries.



QUESTIONNAIRE ON WORK/LIFE BALANCE

Dear Sir/Madam,

I Fauzia Hafeez, an MBA student from Al-Ameen Institute Of Management Studies under

Bangalore University, as a part of her project is doing a survey on “Work-life balance among

women employees in garment industry”. So I kindly request you to fill in the questionnaire.

This is purely for academic purpose, further; I promise you that the information furnished by

you will be kept confidential.

Thanking You,

Yours sincerely,

(FAUZIA HAFEEZ)

Name:

E-mail – id:

Address:

Gender: Male ( ) Female ( )

Contact Number:

Designation:

What is your age?

1. Under 19 years ( )

2. 20-30years ( )

3. 31-40years ( )

4. 41-50 years ( )

5. 51-60years ( )

6. 60 years or more ( )

What is your highest educational qualification?



1. Postgraduate diploma / Masters ( )

2. Graduate. ( )

3. Under-Graduate. ( )

4. Intermediate. ( )

5. Matriculation. ( )

6. Other – please specify ( )

Your marital status:

1. Single. ( )

2. Married ( )

3. Divorced ( )

Do you have any children?

Yes ( )

No ( )

Q.How many hours in a day do you spend with your child/children?

a) Less than 2 hours ( )

b) 2-3 hours ( )

c) 3-4 hours ( )

d) 4-5 hours ( )

e) More than 5 hours ( )



Q. Do you regularly meet your child/children teachers to know how your child is progressing?

a) Once in a week ( )

b) Once in two weeks ( )

c) Once in month ( )

d) Once in 6 months ( )

e) Once in a year. ( )

Q. Do you take care of?

a) Older people ( )

b) Dependent adults ( )

c) Adults with disabilities ( )

d) Children with disabilities ( )

e) none ( )

Q. If yes, how many hours do you spend with them?

a) Less than 2 hours ( )

b) 2-3 hours ( )

c) 3-4 hours ( )

d) 4-5 hours ( )

e) More than 5 hours ( )



Q.How do you feel about the amount of time you spend at work?

a) Very unhappy ( )

b) Unhappy ( )

c) Indifferent ( )

d) Happy ( )

e) Very happy ( )

Q.Do you ever miss out any quality time with your family or your friends because of pressure of

work?

a) Never ( )

b) Rarely ( )

c) Sometimes ( )

d) Often ( )

e) Always ( )

Q.Do you ever feel tired or depressed because of work?

a) Never ( )

b) Rarely ( )

c) Sometimes ( )

d) Often ( )

e) Always ( )



Q.How do you manage stress arising from your work?

a) Yoga ( )

b) Meditation ( )

c) Entertainment ( )

d) Dance ( )

e) Music ( )

f) Others, specify_________. ( )

Q. Does your company have a separate policy for work-life balance?

a) Yes ( )

b) No ( )

c) Not aware ( )

Q .If, yes what are the provisions under the policy?

a) Flexible starting time ( )

b) Flexible ending time ( )

c) Flexible hours in general ( )

d) Holidays/ paid time-off ( )

e) Job sharing ( )

f) Career break/sabbaticals ( )

g) Others, specify________ ( )



Q. Do you personally feel any of the following will help you to balance your work life?

a) Flexible starting hours ( )

b) Flexible finishing time ( )

c) Flexible hours, in general ( )

d) holidays/paid time offs ( )

e) Job sharing ( )

f) Career break/sabbaticals ( )

g) time-off for family engagements/events ( )

h) Others, specify_________ ( )

Q. Does your organization provide you with following additional work provisions?

a) Telephone for personal use ( )

b) Counseling services for employees ( )

c) Health programs ( )

d) Parenting or family support programs ( )

e) Exercise facilities ( )

f) Relocation facilities and choices ( )

g) Transportation ( )

h) Others, specify______________. ( )

Q. Does your organization encourage the involvement of your family members in work-

achievement reward functions?

a) Yes, ( ) specify the name of such program Annual Day________

b) No. ( )

Q .Does your organization has social functions at times suitable for families?



a) Yes, ( ) specify the name of such programs____________

b) No. ( )

Q. Does your organization provide you with yearly Master health check up?

a) Yes ( )

b) No ( )

Q. Do any of the following hinder you in balancing your work and family commitments?

a) Long working hours ( )

b) Compulsory overtime ( )

c) Shift work ( )

d) meetings/training after office hours ( )

e) Others, specify_________________ ( )

Q. Do any of the following help you balance your work and family commitments?

a) Working from home ( )

b) Technology like cell phones/laptops ( )

c) Being able to bring Children to work on occasions ( )

d) Support from colleagues at work ( )

e) Support from family members ( )

f) Others, specify___________. ( )



BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS

Kothari .C.R RESARCH METHODOLGY METHODS AND TECHNIQUES, NEW DELHI,

WISHWA PRAKASHAN 9th Edition, 1990.

Dr. Krishna swami .O.R METHODOLGY OF RESEACH IN SOCIAL SCIENCE, BOMBAY,

HIMALAYA PUBLICATION, 1997.

Sharma B.A.V, Prasad Ravindra, Sathya Narayana.B, RESEARCH METHOD IN SOCIAL

SCIENCE NEW DEHLI.

Sterling PUBLISHED PRIVATE LIMITED 1ST EDITION, 1984.

Muchinsky .M, Paul ,PSYOLOGY APPLLIED TO WORK,UNIVERSITY OF NORTH

CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO, 6TH EDITIION,1992.

Blum.M, L.J.C Naylor, INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY-ITS THEORETICAL AND SOCIAL

FOUNDATION, NEW DEHLI, CBS PUBLICATION, 4TH EDITION 2002.

JOURNALS

Journal of Vocational Behavior, Volume 67, Issue 2, October 2005, Pages 215-232

Jessica R. Mesmer-Magnus, Chockalingam Viswesvaran

Human Resource Development International, Volume, Issue March 2003, pages 69

- 83 Neal Chalofsky.

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business Michelle Turner, Helen

Lingard, Valerie Francis 2009, pages 94 - 111.

Research in the Sociology of Organizations Jean E. Wallace 2006, pages283 – 306

Research in Occupational Stress and Well-being Ronald J. Burke, Teal McAteer

2006, pages 239 – 273.


http://www.emeraldinsight.com/1479-3555.htm

http://www.emeraldinsight.com/0733-558X.htm

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t713701210~db=all


Journal of Vocational Behavior

Volume 66, Issue 1, February 2005, Pages 124-197 Lillian T. Eby, Wendy J. Casper,

Angie Lockwood, Chris Bordeaux and Andi Brinley.

Research in the Sociology of Work Jeremy Reynolds, Lydia Aletraris,2007,pages 285-

311

The international journal of human resource management, Helen De Cieri, London:

Routledge. Vol. 16, no. 1

WEBSITE

http://www.jstor.org/stable

http://www.watsonwyatt.com/research

http://www.workplace.gov.au/workplace/Pages/Conten Page

www.worklife.wa.gov.au

http://www.dol.govt.nz/worklife/index.asp

http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk

www.worklifebalance.ie

www.eiro.eurofound.ie

www.workliferesearch.org

En.wikipedia.org/wiki/work-life_ balance

http://www.emeraldinsight.com


http://www.emeraldinsight.com/

http://www.workliferesearch.org/

http://www.eiro.eurofound.ie/

http://www.worklifebalance.ie/

http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/

http://www.dol.govt.nz/worklife/index.asp

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