Analysis of Organizational and Family Roles in the Work-Life Balance of Blue-Collar Employees

Subrata Banik, Kaniz Marium Akter, Md. Rashedul Hoque, Farha Sultana

Abstract


Objective –Blue-collar workers' work-life balance (WLB) issues have not received enough attention in the literature. This study aimed to examine the impact of organizational support and family support on blue-collar employees’ work-life balance.

Design/Methodology –Employees engaged in the RMG industry in Bangladesh were surveyed using a questionnaire. 387 responses were analyzed through the PLS-SEM approach. The instrument and data were validated by a measurement model, and the hypotheses were tested by a structural model using SmartPLS 3.0 software.

Results –The study revealed that firm support and home support can significantly influence work-life balance, and firm support can strongly impact an employee's home life. These findings indicated that the policies and practices of RMG companies and support from family members can help employees manage their overall life smoothly.

Research limitations/implications - The study was conducted in the RMG industry, which limits the generalizability of its findings. Findings suggested that by introducing employee-friendly corporate policies and human resource practices, RMG companies can assist their employees in solving work-life issues and meeting their personal and family life challenges.

Novelty/Originality –This study, for the first time, empirically validated firm support as an antecedent of home support. In addition, the WLB issues of blue-collar employees are focused on in this study, which has been overlooked in the prior studies.

Keywords


work-life balance; firm support; home support; rmg industry; bangladesh

Full Text:

PDF

References


Abdi, D., Musnadi, S., & S., S. (2020). Effect of Organizational Support and Commitment on Work Satisfaction, and its’ Impact on Employee Performance (Study at the Aceh Provincial Education Office). International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(8), 807–825. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/V10-I8/7638

Abramov, R. N., Gruzdev, I. A., & Terentiev, E. A. (2019). Work-life balance and sources of stress for the academic staff in Russian research universities. Monitoring of Public Opinio: Economic and Social Changes, 151(3), 8–26. https://doi.org/10.14515/monitoring.2019.3.02

Aktar, S., & Alam, M. (2021). Workers’ Satisfaction with Grievance-Handling Procedure: A Study on the Selected Garment Factories in Bangladesh. Management Dynamics in the Knowledge Economy, 9(2), 345–362. https://doi.org/10.2478/mdke-2021-00023

Akter, K. M., Mei Tang, S., & Adnan, Z. (2021). Transformational leadership and quality of work life: A mediation model of trust climate. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 19(4), 161–174. https://doi.org/10.21511/ppm.19(4).2021.14

Ashraf, H., & Prentice, R. (2019). Beyond factory safety: labor unions, militant protest, and the accelerated ambitions of Bangladesh’s export garment industry. Dialectical Anthropology, 43(1), 93–107. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10624-018-9539-0

Asiedu-Appiah, F., & Zoogah, D. B. (2019). Awareness and usage of work-life balance policies, cognitive engagement and perceived organizational support: A multi-level analysis. Africa Journal of Management, 5(2), 115–137. https://doi.org/10.1080/23322373.2019.1618684

Avgar, A. C., Givan, R. K., & Liu, M. (2011). A Balancing Act: Work-Life Balance and Multiple Stakeholder Outcomes in Hospitals. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 49(4), 717–741. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8543.2010.00839.x

Babić, S., & Talbot, K. (2019). Third-age university teachers in language education: Navigating the boundaries of work-life balance and retirement. Second Language Learning and Teaching, 183–198. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-17057-8_11

Banik, S., Akter, K. M., & Molla, M. S. (2021). Impact of Organizational and Family Support on Work-Life Balance: An Empirical Research. Business Perspective Review, 3(2), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.38157/business

Bayhan Karapinar, P., Metin Camgoz, S., & Tayfur Ekmekci, O. (2020). Employee Wellbeing, Workaholism, Work–Family Conflict and Instrumental Spousal Support: A Moderated Mediation Model. Journal of Happiness Studies, 21(7), 2451–2471. https://doi.org/10.1007/S10902-019-00191-X

Beauregard, TA & Henry, L. (2009). Making the link between work-life balance practices and talent attraction. Human Resource Management Review, 19(1), 9–22.

Belwal, S., & Belwal, R. (2014). Work-life balance, family-friendly policies and quality of work life issues: studying employers’ perspectives of working women in Oman. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 15(1), 96–117. https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol15/iss1/7/

BGMEA. (2023). About Garment Industry of Bangladesh. https://bgmea.com.bd/page/AboutGarmentsIndustry

Brislin, R. W. (1980). Translation and content analysis of oral and written material. Handbook of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 22(2), 349–444.

Bryman, A., & Bell, E. (2003). Business Research Methods. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Chaudhuri, S., Arora, R., & Roy, P. (2020). Work-Life balance policies and organisational outcomes-a review of literature from the Indian context. Industrial and Commercial Training, 52(3), 155–170. https://doi.org/10.1108/ICT-01-2019-0003

Chavan, R., Murthy, D.S., Reddy, T. N. (2021). Work & Family Stress on Work Life Balance of Corporate Hospital Doctors. International Journal Management (IJM), 12(4), 138–149. https://doi.org/10.34218/IJM.12.4.2021.014

Chen, C. S., & Farh, J. L. (2000). Quality of work life in Taiwan: An exploratory study. Management Review, 19(1), 31–79.

Clark, S. C. (2000). Work/family border theory: A new theory of work/family balance. Human Relations, 53(6), 747–770. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726700536001

Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, USA.

De Simone, S., Lampis, J., Lasio, D., Serri, F., Cicotto, G., & Putzu, D. (2014). Influences of Work-Family Interface on Job and Life Satisfaction. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 9(4), 831–861. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-013-9272-4

Denson, N., Szelényi, K., & Bresonis, K. (2018). Correlates of Work-Life Balance for Faculty Across Racial/Ethnic Groups. Source: Research in Higher Education, 59(2), 226–247. https://doi.org/10.1007/sl

Dreher, A., Yusuf, R., Ashraf, H., Ahmed, S., Strümpell, C., & Loerbroks, A. (2023). Work-family conflict, financial issues and their association with self-reported health complaints among ready-made garment workers in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 96, 483–496. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-022-01942-9

García, P. S., Urbano, R. L., & Castelao, S. R. (2021). Consequences of COVID-19 Confinement for Teachers: Family-Work Interactions, Technostress, and Perceived Organizational Support. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(21), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.3390/IJERPH182111259

Garg, P., & Yajurvedi, N. (2016). Impact of Work-Life Balance Practices on Employees Retention and Organizational Performance-A Study on IT Industry. Indian Journal of Applied Research, 6(8), 105–108.

Gold, A. H., Malhotra, A., & Segars, A. H. (2001). Knowledge Management: An Organizational Capabilities Perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems, 18(1), 185–214.

Haenlein, M., & Kaplan, A. M. (2004). A Beginner’s Guide to Partial Least Squares Analysis. Understanding Statistics, 3(4), 283–297.

Hair Jr, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2017). A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Islam, M. R. (2023). Impact of Industrial Disputes on Readymade Garments Industry in Bangladesh (Doctoral dissertation). University of Dhaka.

Jawahar, I. M., Stone, T. H., & Kisamore, J. L. (2007). Role conflict and burnout: The direct and moderating effects of political skill and perceived organizational support on burnout dimensions. International Journal of Stress Management, 14(2), 142–159. https://doi.org/10.1037/1072-5245.14.2.142

Khaled, A. F. M., & Ansar, A. (2023). Bangladesh’s ready-made garments sector rebound: Revisiting gendered labor precarity and dependency. Asian Journal of Comparative Politics, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/20578911231170208

King, L. A., Mattimore, L. K., King, D. W., & Adams, G. A. (1995). Family Support Inventory for Workers: A New Measure of Perceived Social Support from Family Members. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 16(3), 235–258. https://about.jstor.org/terms

Koubova, V., & Buchko, A. A. (2013). Life-work balance: Emotional intelligence as a crucial component of achieving both personal life and work performance. Management Research Review, 36(7), 700–719. https://doi.org/10.1108/MRR-05-2012-0115

Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30(3), 607–610.

Kumarasamy, M. M., Hasbolah, F., Hamzah, H., Fazmi, K. N. M., & Omar, S. A. (2022). The Moderating Role of Organisational Support Towards Achieving A Good Work-Life Balance in the New Normal: A Malaysian Lecturers’ Perspective. International Journal of Business and Society, 23(2), 913–930. https://doi.org/10.33736/IJBS.4845.2022

Lazăr, I., Osoian, C., & Raţiu, P. (2010). The Role of Work-Life Balance Practices in Order to Improve Organizational Performance. European Research Studies, XIII(1), 201–213.

Mohanty, A., & Jena, L. K. (2016). Work-Life Balance Challenges for Indian Employees: Socio-Cultural Implications and Strategies. Journal of Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 04(01), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.4236/jhrss.2016.41002

Neneh, B. N., & Welsh, D. H. B. (2022). Family support and business performance of South African female technology entrepreneurs. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research, 28(6), 1631–1652. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-05-2021-0402/FULL/HTML

Omar, W., Zaid, D., Mohamad, N., & Ismail, Z. (2021). Conceptualizing the Impact of Work-Life Balance on Job Satisfaction-Can the Issues be resolved among Nurses? Journal of Emerging Economies & Islamic Research, 9(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.24191/jeeir.v9i1.9763

Padma, S., & Reddy, M. S. (2013). Role of Family Support in Balancing Personal and Work Life of Women Employees. International Journal of Computational Engineering & Management, 16(3), 93–97. www.IJCEM.orgIJCEMwww.ijcem.org

Parvin, K., Mamun, M. Al, Gibbs, A., Jewkes, R., & Naved, R. T. (2018). The pathways between female garment workers’ experience of violence and development of depressive symptoms. PLoS ONE, 13(11). https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0207485

Rasool, S. F., Wang, M., Tang, M., Saeed, A., & Iqbal, J. (2021). How toxic workplace environment effects the employee engagement: The mediating role of organizational support and employee wellbeing. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(5), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052294

Ringle, C., Sarstedt, M., Mitchell, R., & Gudergan, S. (2018). Partial least squares structural equation modeling in HRM research. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 31(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2017.1416655

Sharma, S., Gangwani, S., & Al Fryan, L. (2019). Work life balance of working women professionals: Scale development. International Journal of Scientific and Technology Research, 8(11), 3504–3511. https://ksascholar.dri.sa/en/publications/work-life-balance-of-working-women-professionals-scale-developmen-4

Toffoletti, K., & Starr, K. (2016). Women academics and work–life balance: Gendered discourses of work and care. Gender, Work & Organization, 23(5), 489–504. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12133

Uddin, M. (2021). Addressing work-life balance challenges of working women during COVID-19 in Bangladesh. International Social Science Journal, 71(239–240), 7–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/issj.12267

Urbach, N., & Ahlemann, F. (2010). Structural equation modeling in information systems research using Partial Least Squares. Journal of Information Technology Theory and Application, 11(2), 5–40. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228467554

Wahjuningdiah, E., & Paskarini, I. (2022). The Relationship Between Family Support and Work-Family Balance among Surabaya Health Facility Security Center Employees During the COVID-19. The Indonesian Journal of Occupational Safety and Health, 11(3), 454–462. https://doi.org/10.20473/ijosh.v11i3.2022.454-462

Xu, S., Wang, Y., Mu, R., Jin, J., & Gao, F. (2018). The effects of work–family interface on domain-specific satisfaction and well-being across nations: The moderating effects of individualistic culture and economic development. PsyCh Journal, 7(4), 248–267. https://doi.org/10.1002/PCHJ.226

Yayla, A., & İlgin, E. (2021). The relationship of nurses’ psychological well-being with their coronaphobia and work-life balance during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 30(21–22), 3153–3162. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.15783




DOI: https://doi.org/10.24815/jaroe.v7i1.35969

Article Metrics

Abstract view : 0 times
PDF - 0 times

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Published by:

Accounting Department
Economics and Business Faculty
Syiah Kuala University
Kopelma Darussalam, Banda Aceh, Indonesia - 23111
E-ISSN: 2621-1041

 

Creative Commons License
Journal of Accounting Research, Organization and Economics by Accounting Department of Economics and Business Faculty of Syiah Kuala University is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://www.jurnal.unsyiah.ac.id/JAROE/index.