Wilkinson, K, Tomlinson, J orcid.org/0000-0002-1863-885X and Gardiner, J (2018) The perceived fairness of work-life balance policies: A UK case study of solo-living managers and professionals without children. Human Resource Management Journal, 28 (2). pp. 325-339. ISSN 0954-5395
Abstract
The ability to reconcile work and private life is a matter relevant to all employees, though not all may seek “balance.” Research indicates that organisational work–life balance policies and flexible working arrangements often focus on the needs of working parents, with one potential outcome being “family‐friendly backlash,” or counterproductive work behaviour from those without caring responsibilities. This paper analyses data from 36 interviews with childless solo‐living managers and professionals, exploring perceptions of fairness in relation to these policies. In contrast to previous studies, despite recognising a strong family‐care orientation in employer provisions, perceptions of unfair treatment or injustice were not pronounced in most cases, and thus there was little evidence of backlash/counterproductive work behaviour. The paper uses and develops organisational justice theory to explain the findings, emphasising the importance of situating individual justice orientations within perceived organisational policy and wider regulatory contexts. It also emphasises the importance of evaluating fairness of work–life balance policies and flexible working arrangements in relation to other aspects of the employment relationship, notably opportunities for career development and progression.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2018 The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | fairness, flexible working arrangements, legislation, organisational justice, solo living, work–life balance |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Business (Leeds) > Work and Employment Relation Division (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 06 Nov 2017 13:21 |
Last Modified: | 23 Jun 2023 22:38 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/1748-8583.12181 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:123464 |
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