Ensuring a WorkLife Balance

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• UK National Work-Stress Network
• 6th Annual Conference
• November 19th 2005

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Work should be enjoyable, a positive experience
  and contribute to the overall well-being of all
  workers
• Workers should not be damaged by their day to day
  experiences in the workplace
• Working Time
• Work-rate demands
• Working conditions
• Worker contribution to consultation on processes
• Workers personal needs should be recognised
• Employers need to ensure a balance between work
  demands and worker capabilities
• OUTCOME? Goodwill and positive contributions

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Causes of Stress are wide and varied
• Recognition by employers of their
  responsibilities and duty of care
• Work pressures affect personal relationships -
  affect Work
• External pressures have major influence on
  performance at work
• Avoidance of the leave your baggage at home
  culture
• Preserve the workforce rather than rejecting it
• Fit the work to the worker not the worker to the
  work

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Creating an acceptable framework within which the
  worker and the workplace/business can benefit
• Agreed Leave policies
• Family Friendly policies
• Acknowledgement of care responsibilities
• Maternity Paternity arrangements
• Risk Assessments for maternity
• Flexible approach to work rate and demands
• Job-Sharing, Part-time working with no
  detrimental treatment
• Flexible Working Directive
• Flexi-time
• Working from home?

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Flexible Working Directive
• Allows for a formal application to change working
  arrangements for parental care
• Employer obliged under statute to respond
• Specific criteria for objections
• Appeal process
• Referral to Employment Tribunal with appropriate
  penalties

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Acceptable Rejection grounds
• Burden of cost
• Detrimental effects on meeting customer demand
• Inability to reorganise work internally
• Detrimental impact on quality and performance
• Insufficient work proposed by applicant
• Planned structural changes
• Formal Appeal process
• Right to Employment Tribunal for failure to
  comply with regulations

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Disability Discrimination Act and Sickness
  Absence
• Recognition of condition
• Duty of Care and reasonable adjustments
• Temporary adjustments to contract enabling
  improvement in well-being
• No barriers
• Appropriate and supportive use of sickness
  procedures where possible

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Ensuring a Life-Work Balance

• Benefits to be gained from family friendly
  approaches
• Better reputation as an employer with good
  Equality status and recognition
• Happier workforce with less anxiety
• Potential to reduce sickness absence
• Improved productivity and shareholder benefits
• Goodwill from the workforce

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www.workstress.net
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UK National Work-Stress Network

• Vision Statement
• Caring Supportive Work Environment
• Employer Recognition of Duty of Care
• Health-enhancing work(place/practices)
• Work-Stress Policy in all workplaces
• Well-being at work provision
• Dignity in the workplace for ALL
• Supportive Pro-active Occupational Health

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UK National Work-Stress Network

• Stress is endemic in much of UK Industry and
  especially Public Sector
• Sickness Absence Costs
• Mental ill-health
• Workplace Bullying
• Excessive hours/demands culture

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UK National Work-Stress Network

• Network TU Action/Campaigning
• Recognition and promotion of Safety
  Representative Rights and role
• Effective Regulation and Enforcement
• Employer corporate responsibility

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UK National Work-Stress Network

• Thanks to our Speakers
• Thanks to you for attending
• Thanks to our sponsors, both for today and for
  our activities
• Thanks to the Steering Group for their support
• Come and join us?
• Sponsor us?
• New Advice Booklet draft version

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www.workstress.net