Work Life Balance : An Empirical Analysis of Select Organizations

Purpose – Work-life balance is about living a fulfilled life inside and outside paid work, having control over your time so you can achieve that. It has become important to demonstrate the benefits that employers can derive from such employment policies and practices supporting work-life balance and how they can be used for mitigating the negative effects on the business management. This study was designed to know if there is any difference in perception about presence or absence of work life balance programs due to the demographic variables (age, gender, and marital status) and if the perception about availability or non-availability of work-life balance programs leads to any difference on perception of the employees related to scheduling control, job satisfaction, and mental health level. Design/Methodology/Approach – A structured questionnaire was used to analyze if the perception about availability of work-life balance practices depends on the respondents’ demographic variables and if the perception about availability of work-life balance programs leads to a significant difference in perception of employees’ about the autonomy available in scheduling their time and work, job satisfaction, and mental health. The study was conducted on a sample of 30 employees each from 13 organizations totaling 390 respondents. Findings – The survey instrument was found to be reliable using Cronbach’s alpha test. Statistical analytical tools such as chi-square, Mann Whitney, and other descriptive statistical scores were used for analyzing the data and hypotheses testing. The results of the data revealed significant difference in perception about availability of work-life balance programs on the basis of marital status in IT and FMCG sector and on the basis of age in FMCG sector. However, the strength of such relationship was found to be negligible. Also, a significant difference was found in perception about scheduling control and mental health on the basis of perception about presence of work-life balance programs. Research Limitations – All the limitations of a sample study are applicable on this study also. Practical Implications – The study provides help to the organizations in understanding the demographic variables that lead to difference in the perception of employees about the work-life balance programs and also the impact that such perception creates in the scheduling control, and mental health of the employees. The organizations should have communication strategies to make sure that all the employees are made aware about the availability of work-life balance programs and when and how can they be availed. Originality/Value – This research is probably first of its kind in India which studies the difference caused by perception about availability or non-availability of work-life balance programs on the scheduling control, job satisfaction, and mental health of employees