Work Life Balance

Work Life Balance

The subject of work-life balance is an area receiving increasing attention from academics. Bratton and Gold (2007; 149) describe it as a "hot area", while Redman and Wilkinson (2009; 364) see it as an area requiring increasing scrutiny. This review will cover the meaning of work-life balance, why it is a necessary, ways to implement it, the role of managers and problems introducing practices into the organisation.

Claydon and Thompson in Moore and Ford (2009; 66), suggest work-life balance is not an easily definable term. "The word balance suggests the search for equilibrium between work and life; a settled point perhaps at which work and the rest of life's activities can comfortably reside side by side" (Ibid; 66).

Academics suggest that the changing workforce explains the need to focus on work-life balance. A report by Nick Isles for The Work Foundation titled "The Joy of Work" found nearly one in two workers is female and that the labour market is ageing: by 2010 the labour market only 20% of the workforce will be made up of white, able bodied men under 45 years of age in full time work(2004; 5). In addition Townsend and McDonald, cited in Redman Wilkinson (2009; 364), propose the increase of dual income families and single parents in the workforce as another factor contributing to the increasing importance of work life balance. The Work Foundation report suggests that Information Communication