Integrating Work and Family Challenges and Choices for a Changing World

Subjects:

• Business » Human Resources/Personnel Management
• Business » Management
• Law » Labor Law
• Political Science » Public Policy

Reviews:

• Work-family conflict has emerged as a prominent social issue because of its pervasiveness and complexity. Yet there has been little cultural appraisal of remedies to this conflict or what solutions do or do not work and why. The purpose of the present volume is to foster informed dialogue and debate among various constituencies that have an interest in solving the problems inherent in this conflict... The book's 21 chapters deal with managerial challenges; views from a variety of perspectives, including legal, cultural, and international dimensions; career development initiatives; and future directions.... [A]ll three of the target audiences (i.e., educators, counselors, and human resource professionals) should find the volume relevant. The book is well organized, contains introductory and summary chapters by the editors, and is well documented. Highly recommended for academic and professional business and social work collections.
  —Choice
• Despite the proliferation of corporate work-family programs and calls for a renewal of family values, the goal of achieving a healthy balance between work and family remains elusive. The contributors to this balanced and thoughtful volume examine that social dilemma from a 'stakeholder perspective.' The authors see work-family tensions as a multifaceted social issue and examine the nature and consequences of these tensions from the viewpoint of individuals, employers, consultants, counseling professionals and other service providers. Legal, cultural, international and research perspectives are described, and the unique concerns of vulnerable groups, such as nonexempt employees and ethnic minorties, are recognized. Academics in the social sciences, executive decisionmakers in government and business, human resources professionals, and employed men and women interested in achieving work-life balance will find this insightful volume stimulating and useful.
  —BHR Magazine
• A strength of the book is the inclusion of the perspectives of different players in the work-family arena, usually in the form of commentaries, rather than traditional research reports or literature reviews.
  —Journal of Marriage and the Family
• ...this book is a valuable interdisciplinary resource for work-family educators, researchers, advocates, and policy makers; the diversity of the chapters alone indicates the multifaceted nature of the work-family nexus.
  —Work and Occupations
• This thoughtful compilation...could be of use to labor educators....It has a concluding chapter on the importance of collaborative relationships, and labor educators should find no problem identifying a role for unions when they discuss these issues with labor audiences and helping professionals. This volume's strength includes how it defines the issues and some of its proposed solutions; its clear statement on the deficiencies of most employer work-family programs: its review of the panorama of corporate, helping professional and academic researcher perspectives; and some of its contributors' visions of the future.
  —Labor Studies Journal

Table of Contents:

• Preface
• Tables and Figures
• Issues and Challenges in Managing Work-Family Linkages
• The Changing World of Work and Family by Saroj Parasuraman and Jeffrey H. Greenhaus
• A Panoramic View of Work-Family Concerns by Faith Wohl
• Looking at Work-Family Issues Through Different Lenses
• Toward a Comprehensive Work/Life Strategy by Perry M. Christensen
• The Work-Family Issue from a Consultant's Perspective by Tyler Phillips
• The Role of a Juggler by Susan Miller
• Managing Work-Family Tensions: A Counseling Perspective by Marianne O'Hare
• Work and Family: A Research Perspective by Marcia Brumit Kropf
• Services and Work-and-Family Life by Barbara A. Gutek
• Legal and Cultural Perspectives on Work-Family Relationships
• An International Perspective on Work-Family Issues by Suzan Lewis
• The Work-Family Interface in India by Meera Komarraju
• Cultural Diversity in Organizations: Implications for Work-Family Initiatives by Donna Klein
• A Legal Perspective on Work-Family Issues by Eileen Drake
• Work-Family Initiatives and Career Development: Problems and Promise
• Telecommuting as a Response to Helping People Balance Work-Family by Francine Riley and Donna Weaver McCloskey
• Family, Sex, and Career Advancement by Jeanne M. Brett
• Gaining Legitimacy for Flexible Arrangements and Career Paths: The Business Case for Public Accounting and Professional Service Firms by Monique Connor, Karen Hooks, and Terry McGuire
• The Sex Difference in Employee Inclinations Regarding Work-Family Programs: Why Does It Exist, Should We Care, and What Should Be Done About It (If Anything)? by Gary N. Powell
• Moving Ahead: New Directions for the Work-Family Agenda
• Visioning the Future by Ellen C. Bankert and Sharon A. Lobel
• Moving from Programs to Culture Change: The Next Stage for the Corporate Work-Family Agenda by Dana E. Friedman and Arlene A. Johnson
• The Impact of Corporate Culture on Work-Family Integration by Lotte Bailyn
• Shared Responsibility for Managing Work and Family Relationships by Bradley K. Googins
• The Integration of Work and Family Life: Barriers and Solutions by Jeffrey H. Greenhaus and Saroj Parasuraman
• Index
• About the Contributors