Organizational Values, Work‐Family Issues and the ‘Bottom line’

Organizations in the '90s are struggling to remain competitive in the face of increasing local and global challenges coupled with profound changes in the demographic make up of their workforces. Organizations have restructured and become leaner, often resulting in heavier workloads and longer hours for professional and managerial staff (Schor, 1991). Firms also face increased pressure to deliver higher quality and more innovative products and services. Adding to these demands is the need to achieve these performance objectives with an increasingly diverse workforce. There continues to be a dramatic increase in numbers of non‐traditional employees (women, ethnic and racial minorities) in the workplace. More employees are part of dual‐ career or dual‐income couples; more have children requiring particular childcare arrangements since both parents are now working. As a consequence, work‐family issues have emerged as a high priority concern for both employees and their organizations (Catalyst, 1993).