Work-life balance involves evaluating how employed individuals balance time spent at and outside their occupation. In ancient days, women mainly concentrated on their kitchens, and those who had jobs worked in industries, shops, and farms. However, with the rapid advance in the economy, a greater number of them are getting informed by higher education (Pincus et al., 2017). Learning has made women acquire jobs, which has also led to a difficult challenge for them because they have to balance domestic and professional duties.
Reasons for Evaluation of Work-Life Balance in Employed Women
A healthy work-life balance supposes great importance for employed women, specifically in the current situation whereby both the family and job pose several difficulties to ladies. The variations of the work environment have impacted adverse pressure on them because they have to contend with these two full-time obligations, that’s at the office and home. Employed women encounter more challenges than men in prioritizing occupation and family (Ricciardelli et al., 2020). They are also involved in the conflict because their work overflows into the home more often than it occurs to the job. These issues present a reason why a study should be done on work-life balance in employed women to create a solution on how to harmonise occupation and domestic demands.
Preconceptions, Assumptions, Biases, and Prior Information Related to Work-Life Balance in Women
There are different preconceptions, assumptions, biases, and information related to work-life balance in professional women. Based on the article that explains flexible working and work-life balance in women, there is a rising demand for more flexibility in the workplace, specifically from the millennials (Pulevska et al., 2017). As a result, there are more chances that flexible working will be the norm instead of the exception in many workplaces. This situation can be applied as a positive skill merging resources helpful for employees, specifically women, to cope with their job and family needs (Wong et al., 2017). From this information, working from home can help employed women balance the home and occupational needs. Flexible working gives them time to sort domestic issues quickly as they do their professional obligation because they are stationed at home. This setup allows mothers to retain their job hours after giving birth which may improve women’s fulfilment with work-life balance by enabling them to maintain both sectors.
Based on the articles discussing gender bias-related and work-life balance in working women, profession-life harmony is primarily related to female workers, although even men seek it. There are various issues that a worker may like to get involved in, but this may not be possible because of job-associated obligations (Wood et al., 2020). Jobs have become so engaging that even men cannot get spare time to do their activities like going to the gym and doing sporting and music practices. (Thun, 2020). From this article, there is the assumption that the work-balance discussion focuses on women, only forgetting that even men have extra responsibilities other than occupation.
This information is accurate, but the level of needs that working women are expected to fulfil beyond occupational obligations is more complex than that of men. In addition, employed married women hold a significant position in managing the house, starting from motherhood and performing domestic chores, which is just as important as the career duties. Therefore, it is essential to study work-life balance in employed women.
Problems Involved in Work-life Balance in Employed Women
As women strive to balance work and home obligations, they are faced with problems related to the job place. The first issue of concern is sexual harassment, and women are involved in this case regardless of their aspects, status, and field of employment. Most ladies happen to focus on inferior service jobs, whereas men get involved in management positions (Feeney & Stritch, 2019). This situation makes males take advantage of their subordinate women. Mental harassment is also a significant problem facing employed women. There is a wrong interpretation that women have less capability and inefficient in working as compared to men (Feeney & Stritch, 2019). Operating under such a perception impacts strain on women, which results in mental harassment.
Another major problem faced by employed women is inadequate maternity leaves. This issue affects their schedule at work and harms people’s lives, as they cannot get enough time to nature their children. Women also lack family support, as some marriages do not uphold women to leave the house duties and go to the office (Gujirat & Kumar, 2018). They are also against women performing their job duties until late, which affects their career progression.
The Subjects of Survey on this Topic
The main subject for the success of this study is professional women in parastatals. This study will involve interviewing married women who work in different departments of government institutions. In addition, the survey will include interviewing ladies in management positions in a department like human resource, procurement, and registry. They will give their views on life experience about working and taking over the leadership. This survey will also include groups relating to gender identity and domestic violence, for instance, non-governmental organizations that advocate for gender identity balance.
Conclusion
Today, many women have advanced their careers, hence performing many engaging jobs that include management of large organizations. However, this situation has resulted in complex challenges because of demands from both work and home, which need equal attention. Employed women take a vital position both at home and at workplace. Therefore, it is necessary to study work-life balance in working women to establish a viable solution for their problems.
References
Feeney, M. K., & Stritch, J. M. (2019). Family-friendly policies, gender and work-Life balance in the public sector. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 39(3), 422-448.
Gujirat, O., & Kumar, N. (2018). Investigation of work and life balance of women employees and its effects on emotional and social well-being. Journal of Humanities Insights, 2(3), 152-155.
Pincus, K. V., Stout, D. E., Sorensen, J. E., Stocks, K. D., & Lawson, R. A. (2017). Forces for change in higher education and implications for the Accounting Academy. Journal of Accounting Education, 40, 1-18.
Pulevska-Ivanovska, L., Postolov, K., Janeska-Iliev, A., & Magdinceva Sopova, M. (2017). Establishing a balance between the professional and private life of generation Z. Research in Physical Education, Sport and Health, 6(1), 3-10.
Ricciardelli, R., Czarnuch, S., Carleton, R. N., Gacek, J., & Shewmake, J. (2020). Canadian public safety personnel and occupational stressors: How PSP interpret stressors on duty. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(13), 4736.
Thun, C. (2020). Excellent and gender-equal? Academic motherhood and ‘gender blindness’ in Norwegian Academia. Gender, Work & Organization, 27(2), 166-180.
Wong, P. Y., Bandar, N. F. A., & Saili, J. (2017). Workplace factors and work-life balance among employees in the selected services sector. International Journal of Business and Society, 18(S4), 677-684.
Wood, S., Daniels, K., & Ogbonnaya, C. (2020). Use of work–nonwork supports and employee well-being: the mediating roles of job demands, job control, supportive management and work–nonwork conflict. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 31(14), 1793-1824.