Prioritising identity: A grounded theory of employees' evaluation of the work-life interface in multinational corporations

Abstract

Are we working to live or living to work? The interface between work and personal life is often viewed as a source of irreconcilable conflict and the predominant worklife metaphors of ‗balance‘ and ‗conflict‘ reinforce this view. Much research in this area assumes that time and resource allocation is at the heart of managing the worklife interface; faced with the work-life conundrum‘, many employers respond by implementing time and resource-focused initiatives such as flexible working hours and access to special leave provisions. Increasingly, organisations are devoting significant resources to establishing and promoting effective work-life balance policies. But are these responses based on valid assumptions that accurately reflect employees‘ perceptions of the work-life interface? Anecdotal evidence suggests that, despite the many and varied work-life strategies being implemented in organisations, increasing numbers of employees are engaging with support services outside the workplace to help them manage the intersection between paid employment and family commitments. Many of those seeking support from organisations such as Relationships Australia are male, blue-collar employees in large organisations who have access to, but apparently find unsuitable, the proffered time and resourceoriented work-life initiatives. There appears then to be a ‗disconnect‘ between employers‘ work-life initiatives and employees‘ experiences and perceptions of the work-life interface.