Balance at work, balance at home
Francesca McSteen
Workplace flexibility is associated with better employee healthTake Home Messages:
This study supports the benefits of allowing employees to decide the ‘when’, ‘where’ and ‘how long’ they work.
When employees are given flexibility in the workplace, they are more likely to engage in positive health behaviours. In turn this can reduce negative work behaviours.
Flexibility should be a central part of any health promotion strategy.
Why the research matters:
Worksite flexibility is widely believed to be an essential part of worksite health promotion programs, despite the fact that it is under researched.
Health behaviours are behaviours associated with healthier lifestyles, such as sufficient sleep, exercise, health awareness etc. Employees who have poor health behaviours have been shown to have higher rates of sickness-absence, stress and other work-related impairments.
This study aims to enhance understanding about the associations between work flexibility and health behaviours.
What the research involved:
The study looked at health data from a large, multinational pharmaceutical company in the US.
Over 3000 employees completed a survey in which they reported on perceived workplace flexibility.
They also reported on five health behaviours designed to be indicative of a healthy lifestyle:
- Hours of sleep;
- Frequency of physical activity;
- Participation in health education seminars;
- Stress management; and
- Self-rated healthy or unhealthy lifestyle.
The researchers also attempted to examine the relationship between a change in workplace flexibility and a change in health behaviours over a two year period.
Summary of research findings:
Each behaviour, except for seminar participation, was positively associated with a high level of workplace flexibility.
This means that employees who see their work as being flexible and accommodating generally have a healthier lifestyle.
When health behaviours were compared over the two years, it was found that sleep, healthy lifestyle and seminar attendance had a positive relationship to an increase in work-place flexibility.
While the results from the study do not fully establish that workplace flexibility causes a healthy lifestyle, it does suggest that it may have some contribution and is therefore an important part of workplace health promotion.
Original research:
The effects of workplace flexibility on health behaviours: a cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis.
Grzywacz JG, Casey PR, Jones FA.
J Occup Environ Med. 2007 Dec;49(12):1302-9.