The U.S. is getting older. Americans are living longer, and there are more seniors in the workforce. That means more care-giving responsibilities for everyone.
SHRM’s research shows that members feel two key demographic trends are the growth in the number of workers with eldercare responsibilities, and those with both childcare and eldercare responsibilities.
A few months ago I had the opportunity to coffee shop with an executive who, ironically, had decided to resign from her job the very same morning of our meeting (see my post about her decision: Resignation Day). It was bold decision and beginning of an entirely new chapter in her professional journey. I didn’t know her then. I do now. I am proud to call Teresa my friend.
Generation Y women (born 1978-1994) are concerned about the impact that family and child care decisions will have on their long-term careers, according to a report by the Business and Professional Women's (BPW) Foundation, Gen Y Women in the Workplace.
“In order for businesses to engage successfully with the workforce of tomorrow, it is imperative that they understand Gen Y—what challenges them, what inspires them, what motivates them,” said Deborah L. Frett, BPW Foundation CEO.
Flexibility in the workplace is imperative. It should be seen as a result-based business strategy—not a benefit.
With the variety of employee demographics now in our workforce, the importance of workplace flexibility becomes even clearer. For instance, millennials prefer flexible working arrangements and consider them in accepting employment. But boomers need flexible options as they take on care of their aging parents.
Rewards are linked to performance effectively at 89 percent of the "world's most admired companies" vs. 77 percent of their industry peers, according to the 14th annual World’s Most Admired Companies list compiled by Fortune magazine and Hay Group, a global consultancy. The most admired also are more likely to treat work/life issues as a top priority and to address differing generational needs.
As technology transforms the workplace, companies look for ways to compete in a global work environment, and new generations of employees put a higher value on having control over when and where they do their work, flexible work arrangements have become an increasingly important offering.
G. Brint Ryan discusses HR's critical role in developing Ryan LLC's innovative work environment - myRyan - where employees have the flexibility to work where, when and in what manner that best promotes increased efficiency and effectiveness.
A top-level advisor to President Barack Obama advised Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) members at the 2011 SHRM Employment Law & Legislative Conference to encourage workplace flexibility and to select employees who have a life outside the office.
The following presentation, based on a portion of the results from a recent survey of U.S. workers, focuses on data related to the pressure, self-imposed or otherwise, that employees feel to stay connected to the workplace outside of traditional work hours or when they are away from the office due to personal reasons.
To download a copy of this survey, click here.
Public policy needs to provide a framework that is flexible so employers are able to develop programs that address the needs of businesses and older employees, a member of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) told the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
The commission heard testimony Nov. 17, 2010, from a number of experts, including Cornelia Gamlem, SPHR, on the impact of the recession on older workers and the legal issues surrounding age discrimination.
Working parents and nonparents share similar opinions about work/life balance, according to the latest Adecco USA Workplace Insights survey, released June 9, 2008. But when asked if they have the same level of access to work/life benefits as their colleagues, only 44 percent of nonparents said they did, compared to 60 percent of mothers and 70 percent of fathers.
Everything changes once women start families, but it doesn’t mean it has to be the end of their careers.
So says Saundarya Rajesh, founder and president of Avtar Career Creators, an India-based talent strategy consulting firm dedicated to helping women balance work and life through flexible work arrangements or “flexi-work.”
The 2010 SHRM Executive Roundtable on Workplace Flexibility was held Sept. 23, 2010, in Washington, D.C.
This event brought together leading experts on workplace flexibility. This group included current and former HR practitioners, academicians and researchers, thought leaders, representatives from multiple organizations that focus on the subject of workplace flexibility, policy makers, representatives from the EEOC, and senior members of SHRM’s staff.
Workers from Generation Y (those born between 1980 and 2000) might be comfortable texting, talking, typing, Skyping, Googling and Facebooking simultaneously—and feel anxious and disconnected when they aren’t—but they are much more than a generation of tech-heads. The youngest generation of workers seeks balance, meaning and purpose so they can live and work.
Cutting-edge U.S. employers are developing successful work-fit practices—and reaping positive outcomes that employers attribute to their flexible and effective workplace practices and culture—even while the economy slowly moves from a recessionary entrenchment, according to a new publication on workplace flexibility.
Work/life balance is a problem in the United States, say 89 percent of 1,043 Americans in survey findings released September 1, 2010.
And while more than two-thirds of 613 full- and part-time workers say they have adequate balance in their lives, the recession has upended that balance for 31 percent of workers. When that happens, time with family is the first thing affected, followed by personal down time.
