Assignment # 2

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Work-Life Balancing
Work-life balancing is a major HR focus. Workforce demographics of racial/ethnic, age, gender
and other groups of employees mean that greater numbers of organizations have to adjust
because more employees want increasing flexible work schedules. One area of growth is
telecommuting, through greater use of technology and more employees working outside of
workplace facilities.
Questions for Discussion:
1. What would be the downside of telecommuting for employers? For employees?
2. Do you think organizations should offer some type of work flexibility to all employees? Why
or why not?
3. Do you think work-life balance issues will increase or decrease after the baby boomers retire?
Why or why not?

Answer 1:Where people project the concept of telecommuting or work from home, as most cost
efficient method of working and result in greater productivity, the fact that it too have some
significant disadvantages for both the employer and the employee cannot be overlooked. Some
potential disadvantages are as follows:

For Employer

a) No active supervision: It will be difficult for the employer to track the working hours of
the employee (s). Some employee may not report accurate working hours and hence will
increase the risk of overpayment or underpayment of wages as there will be no person to
actively supervise the workday
b) Additional Cost: Employer have to provide working tools to all of its employees which
may incur additional cost.
c) Security and Privacy: As the work will be done on too many different place and on
various electronic devices, there will always be a risk of work privacy infringement and
work data being unsecured.
d) Legal Issues: Misinterpretations of employer legal liabilities when employees faces any
injuries during telecommuting
 e) Weak employer-employee relationship: Telecommuting will ultimately result in loss of
synergies and weak employer-employee relationships. There will less or zero interaction
among the two. Nonetheless, the trust level of employer will also start to deteriorate.
f) Poor Communication: It will be likely impossible for the employer to keep all of his
employees on the same page and maintain a strong communication between them.
g) Infructuous Team Work: Lack of co-ordination among the team members and no
clarity in job responsibilities will result in loss of production to the employer.
h) Other down heads: Irrespective of the above mentioned disadvantages, the employer
may also face:
1) The burden of solitude
2) Inability of direct supervison
3) Erosion of company culture and/or departmental morale.
4) Loss or incapacity of brainstorming
5) Day to Day challenges to monitor work progress

For Employee:

a) Reduction in chances for promotion: The hardwork and efforts of employee will
not be monitored by the employer and as a result the probability to be promoted is
reduced.
b) Inadequate performance appraisal: Only the quality of final work
produced/submitted will be considered and other performance factors such as number
of hours worked, efforts etc. will be overlooked in telecommuting. Hence, this will
entail unfair and improper performance appreciation.
c) Disturbed family life: In telecommuting employer requires responses from the
employees 24/7. The employee will expected to be active all hours a day irrespective
that he or she is with family, out for dining or at a function.
d) Lack of concentration: while working from home, one misses work environment
and unable to fully concentrate work. At time there is a possibility of being disturbed
either because of guest or by a casual talk with a family member.
e) Lack of discipline and motivation: At home, employee finds no motivation for work
from office peers or the employer. There is also lack of work discipline at home.
f) No social interactions: An employee always seeks a mode of interacting with his
colleagues in order to stay connected. However, such a social interaction is not
possible while working from home.
g) Impossible to work in team: when working at home, it is next to impossible for
employee to work in teams and coordinate a time feasible for every member for
discussing ideas and thereby working on it.
h) Other down heads: Apart from the above disadvantages, other cons an employee is
likely to bear are:
1) Laziness in properly scheduling work time
2) Adapted/Immune to working at comfort level and thereby finding it difficult to
work at office thereafter.
3) Adamant to working as per their own terms and conditions and violating
norms/culture of organisations.
4) Difficulty in presenting achievements.
 5) Credit to one who produce final work and not to the entire team members.

Answer 2
Answer 3
With the retirement of Baby Boomers apparently it is seemed that the issues of work life balance
will be reduced for the fact that they are not well versed of the modern technology and hence
find difficulty in coordination, result in loss of productivity and thereby are no fit to work at
home. However, it is a significant reality that Baby Boomers are more workaholic than
Generation X and Y and more loyal to their employers, capable of working under stress, and
know very well how and in what manner balance work and family life.