NPR Series: The Work-Life Balance

The majority of our society no longer looks the way it did in the 1950s, with one member of the household, generally the husband, working outside the home. Today, if two adults are in a household, both of their incomes are usually needed to keep up with the added costs of daily life. In other households, single parents may be on their own caring for their children. These new family models make the standard 40 hour, 9-to-5 workweek difficult for many parents.

To discuss this issue, NPR is doing a three-part series on how employers can give employees some flexibility so they can have more of a work-life balance. Some of the techniques used by employers include flex-time, results-only work environments, and telecommuting. Employers interviewed in the first segment said that by giving employees more options, they have a more productive staff and less turnover.

First, more and more employers are discovering that loosening the traditionally rigid work schedule pays off. [Katie] Sleep says her retention rate over 16 years is an astonishing 95 percent. And study after study shows productivity also shoots up. More than half of companies now say they offer flextime, and one-third allow telecommuting at least part-time.

To read or listen to the first two parts of the series see More Employers Make Room for Work-Life Balance and The End Of 9-To-5: When Work Time Is Anytime. Stay tuned for part three tomorrow.