Work, families and organisations in transition: European perspectives
Suzan Lewis, Julia Brannen, and Ann Nilsen
Abstract
Across Europe the importance of reconciling paid work and family life is increasingly recognised by a range of diverse government regulations and organisational initiatives. At the same time, employing organisations and the nature of work are undergoing massive and rapid changes, in the context of global competition, efficiency drives, as well as social and economic transformations in emerging economies. This book illustrates how workplace practices and policies impact on employees' experiences of ‘work-life balance’ in contemporary shifting contexts. Based upon cross-national case studies of ... More
Across Europe the importance of reconciling paid work and family life is increasingly recognised by a range of diverse government regulations and organisational initiatives. At the same time, employing organisations and the nature of work are undergoing massive and rapid changes, in the context of global competition, efficiency drives, as well as social and economic transformations in emerging economies. This book illustrates how workplace practices and policies impact on employees' experiences of ‘work-life balance’ in contemporary shifting contexts. Based upon cross-national case studies of public and private sector workplaces carried out in Bulgaria, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, the Netherlands and the UK, this book demonstrates the challenges that parents face as they seek to negotiate work and family boundaries. The case studies demonstrate that employed parents' needs and experiences depend on many layers of context — global, European, national, workplace and family.
Keywords:
Europe,
government regulation,
organisational incentives,
global competition,
efficiency drives,
social and economic transformations,
emerging economies,
workplace practices,
policies,
work-life-balance
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2009 |
Print ISBN-13: 9781847422200 |
| Published to Policy Press Scholarship Online: March 2012 |
DOI:10.1332/policypress/9781847422200.001.0001 |
