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Working women still struggle to juggle

More than a third of UK women struggle to meet career goals AND manage their personal/family responsibilities

28/07/2010

According to the Kenexa Research Institute, 62% of women in the UK claim they meet their career goals and still devote sufficient attention to their personal lives.

In the study, which asked 1,000 workers for their opinions of work-life balance, 56% of women said their company supports employees' efforts to balance work and family/personal responsibilities.

Brenda Kowske, research consultant at the Kenexa Research Institute, said: "Traditionally, women play a large role in managing their family responsibilities and, therefore, they are likely to feel pressure in trying to balance both work and family demands.

"Working in an organisation that supports work-life balance has a significant, favourable impact on how employees rate their pride in their organisation, their willingness to recommend it as a place to work and their overall job satisfaction. Female employees who report having a balance between work and personal responsibilities state a much lower intention to leave their organisation."

Experiencing work-life balance is defined as:

Having the ability to meet career goals while devoting attention to family/personal life and working for an organisation that supports employees' efforts to balance work and family/personal responsibilities.

How to achieve work-life balance

The study found that women in the UK are more likely to achieve balance when their stress level at work is reasonable; women enjoy - in fact get excited about - their work; they feel there is a promising future for them at the organisation; their employer values their contribution and they are encouraged to participate in decisions that affect their work.

Kowske added: "It is encouraging to see that women can find a balance by bringing home the bacon and scrambling the eggs, but some organisations can do more. Almost half of the women in the UK say they don't receive adequate support from their employer.

"Organisations that build a supportive infrastructure and processes stand to attract and retain talented employees and also strengthen their marketplace advantage."

Is your organisation doing enough to support its working women?