September 21, 2007
The Workplace Flexibility 2010 News Roundup is a compilation of the latest news articles, reports and other materials related to workplace flexibility. The News Roundup appears twice-weekly. If you have questions about any of the items, please contact Jennifer Hedrick at jlh62@law.georgetown.edu.
Articles
Moms Eye Part-Time Jobs to Achieve Work-Life Balance
"If you're a working mother, you're far from alone in feeling overwhelmed. Along with grueling work hours, data show you can face discrimination at work because of the conflicting demands of motherhood. And all the while, social pressures are mounting on you to be a perfect parent. So it shouldn't surprise you that more working mothers see part-time, rather than full-time, work as the ideal employment situation.”
Get a Life: 10 Tips for Achieving a Better Work/Life Balance
"Now, at all levels, IT professionals are beginning to give voice to their desire to have some time for personal pursuits. In other words, they want at least some semblance of what's known as work/life balance. Given the nature of IT work and the economic realities of the marketplace, achieving that kind of balance can be a tall order.”
Achieving a Balance
"WORK-life balance is one of the key values in IBM. Among the systems in place are flexi-hours; compressed work week (where the regular work week is compressed into less than five full days by working longer hours); regular part-time (an employee can choose to work five four-hour days); leave of absence and remote work options (working regularly outside designated IBM office space, such as from home or other locations). “These arrangements are will be based on the business needs of the company, and also trust and personal responsibility, which is part of our three corporate values,” explains said Chai Cheng Sheng, director of human resources.”
Reports
The Work-Life Evolution Study
“The purpose of The Work-Life Evolution Study is to review the history of the field, examine current trends, and project potential future directions for employers and practitioners in the work-life arena. In this study, we examined the following:
1. How have large companies’ workforce management strategies evolved in response to the need for work and family integration over the past 15 years?
2. What are the current and anticipated trends that thought leaders in the work-life field view as important?
3. How will these anticipated trends impact workforce management practices and the focus of the work-life field going forward?” Mentions Kathleen Christensen, Ellen Galinsky, Bob Drago and Lotte Bailyn among others.