Employers back work-life balance initiatives

Two new surveys reveal that most employers accept the benefits of introducing work-life balance policies.

Research by the Investors in People UK training body found that over two-thirds (68%) of small and medium-sized firms believe that work-life balance initiatives help businesses become more competitive.

In the survey of 190 employers, 40% thought the main benefit of flexible working initiatives was increased staff satisfaction, and nearly one in five cited increased productivity as the prime benefit of such measures.

A separate survey by the Work Foundation research and consultancy organisation found that over two-thirds of employers (68%) accept their responsibility to help staff achieve a healthy work-life balance in all circumstances. Employers adopting work-life measures did so to boost staff retention (52%), make the organisation more attractive to potential recruits (39%), and to improve overall performance (38%).

However, the study also found that almost a third of organisations (28%) still take a narrow approach, limiting flexibility to their statutory obligations towards working parents. And responses from the 300 human resources professionals surveyed showed that "management resistance to change" was the main difficulty organisations face in implementing work-life balance measures (30%).