Women’s incorporation into the labour market has been a widespread phenomenon in developed countries in recent decades, and this has brought changes for both the composition of the workforce in companies and family models. We thus find a work environment in which the proportion of women has increased considerably and in which the traditional family model has changed. This traditional family model in which the man was the household’s sole breadwinner has been progressively replaced by the two-income family model with two spouses holding paid jobs. In Spain, female unemployment has gone from 40.77% of the total in 2006 to 45.46% in 2017 (INE, 2018). Traditional couples, already a minority, coexist with two-income couple and single-person household models.

These changes have brought tensions to the relationship between work and family. When one of the two areas demands a lot of time or certain behaviours that make it impossible to fulfil the demands of the other, the so-called work-family conflict (Greenhaus, 1988) comes about. This has negative consequences on family and work life that affect companies and society in general. 

To act upon the work-family conflict, it is necessary to know what factors generate it. Certain personal family and professional characteristics like gender, marital status, number of children, type of employment and work pressures have been analysed in the specialized literature as possible sources of conflict. Geographic area is also a determining factor. In fact, there are differences in the policies implemented by European countries to support balance. This is explained by economic conditions and by other variables, for instance cultural variables, which determine how relationships between work and family are perceived and dealt with (Korabic, Lero and Ayman, 2003).

Using a number of databases, this article analyses the level of work-family conflict in different European countries as well as the individual and cultural factors that condition it. In the case of Spain, it also includes the human resource practices that companies use to help their employees to confront work-family conflict and the effect they have. 

The Fifth European Working Conditions Survey, from 2015 (figure 1) shows that there are differences in the degree of work-family conflict in different European countries. The data reveals that work-family conflict levels are high although they differ significantly between countries. They are lower in Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands while Greece, Hungary and Spain are in the lead. These differences seem to be related to the degree of development of the welfare state in each country. 

However, differences can also have a cultural basis tied to factors like ambiguity aversion (Ollo López and Goñi Legaz, 2017), which assesses to what extent members of a culture feel threatened in unfamiliar, uncertain or uncomfortable situations. Countries with high ambiguity aversion seek to reduce conflict by regulating it in companies and at the state level through the implementation of parental leave, family protection laws and the creation of day-care centres. This makes the relationships between these spheres more controlled and thus more separate. 

Another cultural factor that helps to explain the conflict is social support (Parasuraman, Greenhaus and Granrose, 1992) since support offered in the company and in the family environment contributes to reduce the levels of personal and professional stress. 

Applying this support to the cultural terrain, there is a dimension called human orientation which determines the degree to which a society encourages its members to be fair, altruistic and generous and rewards them for this. In family and workplace settings these behaviours lead families and organizations to lend more support to those who balance both spheres, which helps to reduce conflict levels. In this sense, the research conducted confirms that countries like Greece and Hungary have low values in this dimension and high values in work-family conflict. 

Individual factors related to personal characteristics and the type of work done should be added to cultural factors (Ollo López and Goñi Legaz, 2017). In the personal sphere, the conflict is explained by the roles assumed. When persons carry them out simultaneously, they face resource constraints and have difficulties in fulfilling the responsibilities assumed. Moreover, considering that expectations about the roles of men and women are different, the impact of the conflict may vary according to gender. 

The Fifth European Working Conditions Survey shows that women have greater levels of conflict than men in almost all countries (save for Austria, France and Spain), especially in Portugal and Greece (figure 1). Corroborating certain previous studies, it has been found that people with greater work and family demands experience higher levels of conflict. It has also been found that demanding work and stress intensify the conflict, especially for women.

In relation to domestic work, having children increases conflict among both men and women. The time spent on household chores only increases conflict among the female population, however. Differentiating between caring for children and performing household chores, it should be noted that caring for children has been shared more equally between both genders, but housework, which is a source of conflict only for women, has not. This may be due to the fact that in most European countries the increased female presence in the labour market has not been offset by an equivalent decrease in participation in domestic tasks.

To help employees balance work and family life, many companies offer them three types of balance practices: family support, parental leave complementing what is established by law and flexible work schedules. 

Although the aim is for employees to be able to combine the demands of home and family, due to the different social expectations that exist regarding the role of men and women in paid and unpaid work the practices’ impact can vary depending on the gender of the person using them.

Data from the Spanish Quality of Work Life Survey from 2010 was used to estimate the impact of the three groups of practices on work-life balance (Goñi Legaz and Ollo López, 2016). Figures 2, 3 and 4 show the results obtained for each type of practice. 

Firstly, with respect to family support resources, figure 2 shows that they improve balance. Data indicates that individuals working in organizations that provide services like childcare and support for children’s education are more satisfied with work-life balance than the employees of companies who do not offer this support. In addition, it is observed that levels of satisfaction with balance are higher for men. A possible explanation for this result is that these practices seek to promote balance while maintaining a conventional view of the ideal employee, who is a full-time professional committed to his work and without responsibilities outside it or with ones that better fit the role associated with the male gender. 

Secondly, in the case of non-compulsory parental leave the study analyses the ease with which individuals obtain days off without pay for family reasons; for example, leaves of absence, reductions in working hours and sporadic absences for personal reasons. These practices make it easier for employees to fulfil their family responsibilities by giving them more control over meeting them in reducing their working hours. As figure 3 shows, parental leave favours balance for both genders although the increase is higher for women than for men. A possible explanation is that these practices help them to balance their desire to have a paying job with the perceived social demands associated with the female role, where caring for the family continues to take precedence. 

Thirdly and lastly, reference should be made to flexible work schedules. People’s needs vary, so the intention is for employees to be able to manage their work schedules autonomously. Unlike the above practices, flexible work schedules increase balance for men and women equally, making them the set of practices offering significant improvements for both (figure 4). 

Although flexitime practices seek to balance work and family life, they can be made available to employees for other reasons. For example, given that companies wish to attract and retain talent as well as greater commitment from employees, flexitime practices can be important in human resource policies. 

Consulting the 2001-2004 Spanish Quality of Work Life Survey, it has been found that personal characteristics are what most condition the use of the partial workday while type of work explains the other flexitime practices analysed (Goñi Legaz and Ollo López, 2015). 

The partial workday (figure 5) is most used by women with family responsibilities, understood as belonging to families where both parents have a paid job and children. This reflects that the division of paid and unpaid work remains. The conventional family model may have been partially replaced by a model that maintains the division of paid and unpaid work between men and women even if both partners work. The profile of employees who use this practice usually corresponds to someone of low hierarchical rank, with little seniority in the company and a temporary work contract, which may imply that their incorporation into the full-time labour market is more difficult. 

The survey data shows that flexible working hours and a schedule set by oneself are used especially by men in positions of responsibility, as is the possibility of taking a day off. These results could indicate that these practices are used by companies to attract and retain talent through so-called emotional salary. Analysis of the profile of employees who use them calls into question the idea that they are most common among those with more of a need for balance since they predominate among the most valuable workers for the company. 

Work-family conflict is found across Europe, but there are differences among territories for cultural reasons. Those from Mediterranean countries and Eastern Europe experience it to a greater extent while it manifests least in Scandinavia. To reduce conflict it is necessary for the states with a greater tendency towards regulation to facilitate separation of the personal and private sphere. In turn, countries that reward fair, altruistic and generous attitudes should provide support that helps to fulfil the obligations of both spheres. 

Adapting to the national culture of the country, companies can offer work-life balance practices whose effect will be greater depending on the gender of the employees who use them. Thus, family support practices especially increase balance for men. Conversely, parental leave practices mainly favour women, and, lastly, ready access to flexitime increases balance for both genders.

Human resources managers should take this into account in order to design practices in tune with the expectations, needs and profiles of their employees, thus contributing not only to their well-being but also to corporate profits. 

This article has been adapted from these studies:

GOÑI, S. and A. OLLO (2016): "The impact of Family-Friendly Practices on Work-Family Balance in Spain". Applied Research in Quality of Life, 11 (3), 983-1007. 

GOÑI, S. and A. OLLO (2015): "Factors that Determine the Use of Flexible Work Arrangement practices in Spain", Journal of Family and Economic Issues,36 (3), 463-476.

OLLO-LÓPEZ, A. and S. GOÑI-LEGAZ (2017): "Differences in Work-Family Conflict: What Individual and National Factors Explain Them?", The International Journal of Human Resources Management, 28 (3), 499-525.
 

More bibliographic references:

CLARK, S. C. (2000): "Work/Family Border Theory: A New Theory of Work/Family Balance" Human Relations, 53, 747-770.

GOÑI, S. and A. OLLO (2016): "The impact of Family-Friendly Practices on Work-Family Balance in Spain". Applied Research in Quality of Life, 11 (3), 983-1007. 

GOÑI, S. and A. OLLO (2015): "Factors that Determine the Use of Flexible Work Arrangement practices in Spain", Journal of Family and Economic Issues,36 (3), 463-476.

GREENHAUS, J. H. (1988): "The Intersection of Work and Family Roles: Individual, Interpersonal and Organizational Issues", Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 3, 23-44.

HOUSE, R. J., V. GUPTA, P. J. HANGES, M. JAVIDAN and P. W. DOFMAN (2004): "Culture, Leadership and Organizations", The GLOBE Study of 62 Societies, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

KORABIC, K., D. S. LERO and R. AYMAN (2003): "A Multi-Level Approach to Cross Cultural Work– family research: A Micro and Macro Perspective", International Journal of Cross Cultural Management,3, 289-303.

KREINER, G. E. (2006): "Consequences of Work-Home Segmentation or Integration: A Person?Environment Fit Perspective", Journal of Organizational Behavior, 27(4), 485-507.

OLLO-LÓPEZ, A. and S. GOÑI-LEGAZ (2017): "Differences in Work-Family Conflict: What Individual and National Factors Explain Them?", The International Journal of Human Resources Management, 28 (3), 499-525.

PARASURAMAN, S., J. H. GREENHAUS and C. S. GRANROSE (1992): "Role Stressors, Social Support, and Well-Being Among Two-Career Couples", Journal of Organizational Behavior,13, 339-356.