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CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

FACTORS THAT AFFECTS THE QUALITY OF WORK-LIFE BALANCE

Introduction

As an employee and also human resource to the company, they are the
competitive advantage (Chenoweth, 2014) for the company. Therefore company
needs peoples to fulfill the company objective, mission and vision. While working in
the company employees need to accomplish the task given and the responsibilities
that had been set. Most of the company had set the performance indicator towards
their staff and responsibility on employee to achieve the target, in mean time as an
employee and also a general people which had multiple roles (Lowe, 2007) to be
fulfilled as the demands.

Apart from the responsibilities as an employee, employees are also the labor
(Chenoweth, 2011) for the life of the family, many competing responsibility in life
(Acas, 2015; Kaur, 2013); as the leader-carrying on the husbandry/wifely duties, the
care commitment involving upbringing of the children or elderly care, duties and
interest outside of work. At the same time the employee’s also belong to the society
such as the responsibility in making sure the family upbringing giving benefits to the
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society. The most important role as human being is we are the servant to god (Allah),
become the true servant whom obedient to Him and relies on Him for all needs. As a
norm of culture, we’ve being educated to perform well and responsible toward our
roles. In certain situation it may come to conflict of roles if individual couldn’t
balance the roles requirement and this will impose burden to others and affect the
many parties.

Work Life Balance Model

Discussing of work life balance, it concern on how people schedule and

balance the daily duties, manage their responsibilities and set the priorities on the
duty. If people couldn’t manage well their duties on the specific roles it may result of
burnout and stress. When those things appear it may gives effect to the person,
organizational and the social.

Abboud (2013), discuss the work life balance in five model it goes to
segmentation model, spillover model, compensation model, conflict model and
instrumental model. Her opinion in segmentation model discusses on work and
family are separate and do not effect each other. Its means the duty of work and
family duty being apply at different time, area and function. In carrying out those
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duties and responsibility people will act differently, such as, he might become the
caring person as a father or husband, the soft spoken, active person and etc. but at
workplace he is a strict officer, outspoken, punctual and etc. The personality change
depends on the responsibilities of roles and dealing with whom.

In competitive market, people always try to perform better in working and

also the family life. Some people wouldn’t be able to separate those feelings,
behavior towards situation that happen in same day and split the personality
depending on the situation. It’s shown in her studies that men are better separating
their work and family roles due to the facts that society unlike women they are more
sensitive to the progress and happiness of the family. People that able to separating
personality towards particular roles/task, they are able to achieve the career rewards
(Asda, 2015) and the family succeed.

Spillover model explains on attitude and experience at work affects at home

or either situation at home affect at the workplace. It directly relate to emotion, mood
and values. Robbins & Judge (2011), emotion is linked to irrationality, expressing
emotion in public may be damaging to the career or status, by that emotions are
necessary for rational thinking. In practice doing rational thinking (Dasgupta, 2010),
the person need to incorporate both thinking and feeling. With the rational thinking,
individual will have strong sense of self awareness, recognize the emotion when
experience the situation that may bring affect to other situation. Enable to recognize
the own feeling make individual understand their self deeper and able to control the
surrounding situation. To control the emotion people need to always be positive. In
organization behavior, emotion always related to external circumstances sometimes
the changing weather may become a causes emotion depression and moody.

According to CAHRS (2010); Raisinghanil & Goswami, 2014, believe work

interferes with family more than family interferes with work. It because in
performing work there is standard process that need to be followed and it’s control
by the culture of organization and working system, different between family roles,
there no specific guidelines and inflexibility. Supposedly, individual more control
over the decisions at home, but in this theory problem at work sometime give effect
to the family’s communication or relation.
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The compensation model in this theory explains further on negative

(imbalance) relation between to domain (work and family). Increasing dissatisfaction
of family leads reduction of energy and time. Employee need to put so much effort
for one specific role. At the same time, the individual trying hard to make those
domain in balance. Such an example; person who are working outstation constantly
less time with family, but once they had plenty of time due of duty reshuffle, leave or
break from the task, they will take their family to the vacation trip, bought an
expensive present as an intention to cover up the insufficient time. This idea may be
giving effect on the family institution (Lokman, 2015).

The touch of parenting is the process of promoting and supporting the

physical, emotion, social, financial and intellectual development of a child from
infant to adult. It refers to raising a child more than biological relationship. Even
though parenting skills are vary based on individual self upbringing, environment
changes and surrounding. Othman and Norazmah (2010), found parent seen rarely at
home and often busy with work, will cause the children to be bored. Therefore, it
influences children searching external activities especially with friend to fill in the
bored. It probably involve with negative activities are high, because they intent to try
new things.

The conflict model refers to redundant of individual roles at workplace, home

and their self. Those inter role would become conflict if the individual would not
able to manage their time. In certain situation the individual does not intent to miss
the schedule of one role (e.g: family role), but when come to the unplanned situation
it goes conflict (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014). For the example, the father have
to send his son for the taekwondo training, but a father have to finished the report
immediately, so miss to send the child for the training session. Requirement to fulfill
both roles at the same time require individual sacrifices in the other. The inter-role
conflict sometime make employee guilty (CAHRS, 2010, Mohd Kamel, 2011) to
their self-cause couldn’t accomplish the job on time. If it relates to family situation,
they may be blaming on their self for ignoring the responsibility as a parent, wife or
husband. Therefore, it is not easy for the individual to plan accordingly to fulfill their
self and family needs when it need the involvement of others.
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The role conflict involved work-family role conflict (Dasgupta, 2010) which
is person concern feels that demands placed on him/her by the very two very
important domains of his/her life. Abboud (2013) said the demands of those domains
consists Work Interfering Family (WIF) Role Conflict and Family Interfering Work
(FIW) Role Conflict. WIF occurs when work related activities being interfere with
home responsibilities and FIW conflict arises when family role responsibilities
impede work activities (Dasgupta, 2010). In example of the situation of WIF is the
individual need attend emergency meeting with client which is being schedule last
minutes, that’s make the parents unable to picking his/her children from school even
though it’s a daily schedule. The example situation relate to FIW such as the parents
have to take a leave from work to take care of child in circumstances of absenteeism
(Chenoweth, 2011; EU-OSHA, 2012) of the babysitter of the child sick. This
disorder interference makes it difficult for any parents and also an employee to
implement what has been planned in the office or vice versa.

There is three main types of conflict that is time based conflict, strain based
conflict and behavior based conflict. The time based conflict occurs when time spent
at one role (family) is not equivalent or not balance with the time spent for the other
role (work). An example a father misses the schedule of his son taekwondo training
due to the obligation at work place and forgets to ask his wife to take that part, a
father will feel guilt. The situation will effect son’s emotion, the father will be judge
as irresponsible which more concern to his work. Therefore, taking part in many
roles will reduce the time or energy needed to meet all the required demands
(Hammer & Thompson, 2003).

The strain based conflict discussed by Abboud (2013); Bakker & Damerouti
(2007) is stress of one role giving impact to performance to the other roles such an
example, the employee done the mistake on their task and being scold by the
manager. The strain situation happen at home when the parent releasing the anger or
frustration to the children. This reflect person-environment fit theory required to
match between knowledge, skill and abilities (KSA) in accomplish task in exactly
way. When the KSA do not match, people doing things beyond their capabilities it
will result stress. So the stressful event will result fatigue and serious event may goes
to depression, if the situation couldn’t be handle or manage it will affect the home
management roles.
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Discuss on behavior based conflict, Abboud (2013) said the behavior at work
with the obligation given couldn’t be differentiated when at home. It’s mean if the
individual is a manager which is needed to be firm, strict and detail in every single of
the task either from the subordinate or colleague. The behavior carried away in the
workplace to home, she/he might go very particular, very strict treat a child same as
the subordinates situation. This will end up dysfunctional attitude, to switch of the
behavior become difficult (Abboud, 2013).

Instrumental Model discuss by Abboud (2013) is the roles on the domain

(family and work) are support each other. The activities on the family roles don’t
effect the progress to perform in work roles. There is positive acceptance between
two domains, which need the negotiation and high acceptance among family member
and organization. People said person success is depending on whom behind the
person. The support and understanding among family member will encourage people
to perform better (Mohd Kamel, 2011) at workplace and organization also need to
take part in understand the employee’s other role which is the employee is not fully
belong to them and need to have exception when it come to family matter.

Work Life Balance Concept

The average people spend over third of their daily life at workplace (Henning
& Nakai (2013) and some of them have to bring work to home, spent their weekend
at office just the reason to accomplish the task given or to achieve company target.
Some people work for appraisal and appreciation instead of personal growth for them
work is priority, if the task wouldn’t able complete on the and company wouldn’t
achieve the target, it may effect on the person appraisal and performance (on the
rewards, bonus, allowance and etc) by that, those individual worried on how they
going to support the family expenses, to fulfill the needs of their child, wife/husband
and to pay the debt loan and etc (Yanchus, et. al, 2013). When these situations keep
adopted in the mind, they would certainly ignore the work life balance and some
people will become workaholic.
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Workaholic refer to people becoming so exaggerated towards work that

might add up risk to their health, personal happiness, interpersonal relations and
social function (Brady, et. al. 2008). Enthusiastic workaholics and non-enthusiastic
workaholics is those who involved in high work involvement and high drive to work,
studies found workaholic person easily involved in work-life conflict they have high
enjoyment in work, do not care the surrounding and later they will face low
enjoyment of work (EU-OSHA, 2012). Workaholic person is tend to work more than
the normal limit time and some of them looking for the monetary basis in filling
lifestyle and possibility in denying to balanced their extended roles. In situation, the
person end up said they had not enough time to do what they like.

With current organization diversity, labor market involve females, more dual
career couples (Subramaniam, et. al, 2012, Kaur, 2013) single parents and more
workers involved in caring others (extension family) and more workers working
beyond the traditional retirement age (Henning & Nakai, 2013). The diversity
requires organization to plan and prepare the multiple roles by their employee. The
multiple demands from the roles of individual to achieve the satisfaction at every role
may find dissatisfaction and challenging (Henning & Nakai, 2013) if the individual
wouldn’t have strategies, understanding and acceptance from the every party.

Advance technologies nowadays result more opportunities to engage in work

anytime and anywhere (Henning & Nakai, 2013), the employer able to access
employee easily. Technology now makes it possible for employers to keep track of
their employee, with certain device employer may able to keep track of virtually all
workplace communication by any employee, able to now the employee schedule
through email message (Guerin, 2015) and etc. These taking as advantages by the
employer in make sure the employee meet the job in short time. But this activity is
unlawful, which is employee having right for their privacy and personal life. The
advance technology need employee and employer understand the privacy hour. Since
the function of internet is 24 hours non-stop, employer couldn’t expect employee will
continue the duty at work after working hour. If the situation continuous, employee
will fed-up and influence job dissatisfaction, the worth situation will occur employee
had intention to leave.
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Work life balance involved professional people in equally balance the

professional and family life. In achieving the balancing of professional work
requirement and family life it will enhance the performance and productivity by that
it will bring positive satisfaction level (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014) to
employee and organization. In making sure the employee in high working
satisfaction level, organization play important role towards employee commitment,
loyalty and performance. An organization that care and concern for the hardness of
their employee would able to create the policies, guidelines or code of conduct in the
organization in making sure the employee sustain or increase their performance
level. The policies apply not only accelerate performance but it also able to decrease
the employee layoff and turnover (Chitra & Sheila, 2012).

Layoff and turnover (EU-OSHA, 2012) will giving lost to the company, it
might not effect directly to the company profit but it reflect the commitment toward
the organization and indirectly cost of losing a trained worker (Korabik et. al, 2008).
As an organization, they have to make sure employee able to fulfill the task
requirement suit with employee’s KSA, if the employee couldn’t perform,
organization responsibility to ‘fit’ the employee, it could be done through training
program, understand of organization culture and company policies toward achieving
company’s goal. It such a wasting if the company couldn’t prepare the strategies to
make employee loyal and able to retain in the organization.

Work life balance policies will bring successful employee to the organization
and it wouldn’t effect the company performance in business industry example done
by PricewaterhouseCooper that implement the work life balance practice, they able
to increase control over where, when and how their employee working. They able to
increase about 30% job satisfaction among their employee.

It because the happiness of employee at work place, will create the happiness
at home and vice versa. As our employee is a mother/father, daughter/son and friend
to other, which is they have biggest role outside workplace. The emotion of
employee can be control by the organization indirectly. Organization that committed
in providing balance working conditions enables the employees to achieve a work
life balance at the same time as pleasant in achieving business needs.
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The Work Life Balance Policy

Work life balance is a factor of conflict among employee that does have
plenty of tasks to done at the same time or day. It will result depress, fatigue,
exhausted if the internal conflict of the person could be manage accurately. The
conflict sometime may bring effect to the other domain, example stress in working
bring effect in entertaining children at home. Employees who do not able to resolve
and control the conflict properly will face conflict; some of them will decide to
release one of the roles. For example, the architect feel of limited time with children,
and able to see her/his children once their child was sleep, so the architect may make
decision to left the position in the reason to concentrating for the family.
Organization that do care and concern on employees need, will find a solution to
make sure they may able to retain their talent worker and minimize their employee
conflict due to work-life.

Public sector employee, they gain conducive advantage provides by public

sector in ensuring the balance between work and personal life. The General Order in
Chapter C, regulation in managing public service human resources had complete
guideline on the type of leave. The latest compensation leave announce by the Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on 1 May 2015 during Labor Day celebrating
in Kuching, Sarawak (Online Berita Harian, 2015) extend the unrecorded leave to
attend funeral of parents in law, adoptive parents and legally adopted children.
Generally, Malaysia’s public servant do able to received unrecorded leaves once they
involve in i) extra working hour (in certain circumstances), ii) involved in volunteer
forces training such as Askar Wataniah, Simpanan Sukarela Tentera Laut Darat,
Ikatan Relawan Rakyat Malaysia (RELA) and etc, iii) attending courses or training
programs, iv) attending organization training cooperation, v) involved in sports
(representing the ministry of international), vi) attending formal exam, vii) paternity
leave (basically 7 days), viii) managing or attending funeral the death of family
members, ix) involved in part time course (further study or distance learning), x)
involved in organ donations.

As the public servant they also deserved Hajj Holiday for 40 days, the leave
because of medical circumstances and depending to the medical report such as
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tuberculosis, leprosy and cancer. Under leave of services, they deserved to apply half
pay leave to taking care of immediate family member (14 days and 30 days if the
services exceed 180 days), they also able to apply unpaid leave for own affairs (30
days depends on year of services). The unpaid leave being categorized for the reason
of taking care of the infant immediate after end of maternity leave (they deserve to
have 1,825 days to take care of their child and may take it at once, but wouldn’t have
get the privileged for the next birth), following spouse working abroad or further
study.

To ensure the work life balance of the public servant, public service do
applied staggered working hours in purpose in increasing the quality of services and
long hour service to public, the quality of life balance indirectly to employee; they
are able to choose their working hour instead of static working hour. The staggered
working hour applied by the public sector divided into three categories WP 1 (7.30
am – 4.30 pm), the WP 2 (8.00 am – 5.00 pm) and WP 3 (8.30 am – 5.30 pm), the
break hour is on 1.00 pm – 2.00 pm (Monday to Friday) and 12.15 pm – 2.45 pm
(Friday). The staggered working hours is to optimal the employee function
considering the employee in managing daily life schedule. Singapore public servant
also applied staggered working hour in intention to control the road congestion
(Subramaniam, et. al, 2015)

The private sector in Malaysia are encouraged by Malaysia Government to

implement the Flexible Work Arrangement (FWA) that goes more flexible in term of
service duration, place and working hours at the workplace (Azlinzuraini et. al,
2014). In Malaysia, the work life balance still in promoting basis, local Malaysia
company still wonder to applied it in as standard of organization or make it as the
Standard of Practice/Operation (SOP) (Ooi, 2003). According to Ooi, 2013;
Azlinzuraini, 2014, many Malaysia local organizations still reluctant to apply the
FWA because they doubtful those privileges will be misused by the employee. Once
the companies ready to apply it as a SOP then it will become the organization culture
towards work life balance, company should realize the application of work life
balance policy is to engage with young generation who want work life balance (Ooi,
2013) organization also deal with employee (husband and wife are working) as their
employee, if the company so rigid, the best talent in organization would have
intention to leave (EU-OSHA, 2012).
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The flexibility toward employee among organization is not easy to be

implement, there many factor need to be considered and recording system by
immediate superior (Azlinzuraini, 2014) they play a role by keeping the activities
and flexibilities towards employee on the employee handbook. Distress and
dissatisfaction worker (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014) will cause high risk to the
organization. Those employees potentially to make a mistake while doing the task,
the improper life at home will affect the flow of work. When the employee gone
burnout, the will had intention leave the company (Chitra & Sheila, 2012) and find
the better life style, instead of tortured situation on everyday life.

The Malaysia government’s objective in the Tenth Malaysia Plan (2011-

2015) to ensure the attention is given to children’s early education. Which is
government believe with proper parental guidance and attention, children will have a
better life and internal strength for the future of the nation (Tenth Malaysia Pan,
2011-2015). Align with that, organization should prepare in considering the
employee with the responsibility to their children. Nowadays, the responsibility of
taking care children doesn’t fully bare by a women or mother, since we live in time
where husband and wife are working especially in professional level, the balance of
role are emphasized (Azlinzuraini, 2014; CAHRS, 2010).

In applying the standard practice of work life balance in organization,

manager needs to balance the immediate needs of the service with the need to create
and maintain a diverse and effective workforce (Azlinzuraini, 2014; Aston
University, 2015). The Human Resource Department of this university suggest the
agreement and policy applied have to concern the workload responsibilities (Acas,
2015), the best alternatives. Immediate superior have to monitor the performance and
also the career management of the employees. Ooi (2014) mentioned the right
strategies bring positive development among employee because the employee able to
plan their role as an employee and parents instead. New things couldn’t being apply
in one day, it need to be plan properly, as fast it implement the fast it will be
vanished.

Generally, Malaysia Employment Act 1955 contains basic work life balance
practice. Basically, local private organizations in Malaysia do apply the Employment
Act as rule in managing the human resource. Act concern on employment of women
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that do not able to work between the hour of 10.00 pm – 5.00 am (unless the
transportation provided, related on shift system), women do not work underground
mining operations and maternity protection (the maternity leave entitled to 60 days’
and every time they give birth – this also depends to the SOP of organization on how
many time of birth). Act also concern on Working Hours and Leave, employer
compulsory to provide one rest day per week, the maximum working hour per day is
eight hours (the lunch or tea break not consider as working hour), the maximum
overtime (the overtime is voluntary) could applied by the employer is 104 hours per
month and the rates of pay overtime 1.5 times the hourly rate of payment. The public
holiday, on the Act only entitles 11 days but depending on the state, for the annual
leave, basically duration of annual leave depends on length of services, the minimum
is eight days with less than two years service. In Employment Act do not provide
rule for emergency, compassionate, paternity leave or the flexible working hour that
can be used as the rule in the workplace. In discussing of work life balance the
concern and trust of organization will show the organization trust and care (Ooi,
2014) towards the employee.

Nowadays, employees more concern of quality of work life balance, the

public servant noted on the eligibility, those privilege enable them to balance their
extended roles. But, discussing on work demand, the long working hour (Raisinghani
& Goswani, 2014), the work intensity, the due date, special task and proportion of
working hours spent in work (Delecta, 2011), the additional hours need from
employee in making sure the task is perfect without error sometime or always
required the employee bring work to home or work over the weekend. This will
result in fatigue, anxiety, exhausted (EU-OSHA, 2012) and will bring psychological
consequences that affect the quality of home and family life (Delecta, 2011;
Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014).

Certain task or position required them to work over the weekend, especially
related to big nation event or company event. That required them to do all the
preparations towards the event; becoming the committee member or floor manager in
making sure the event smoothly. This task is sometime do not related on their
specific duty on the workplace, do not mention specifically in the job description, but
they need to fulfill the task as a requirement or employee engagement towards
organization. Therefore, the whole week of working result of fatigue and tired, there
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is no resting day or relaxation, this might bring effect to personal wellbeing. In

circumstances, employees will intent to taking sick leave or absent (Chenoweth,
2011; Chitra & Sheila, 2012; EU-OSHA, 2012) from work over the weekdays to
recover the tiredness. If this situation continued happen, it will effect the flow of
work especially involving the due date basis.

The work life balance is not just how the individual allocating (Delecta,
2011) their time, scheduling among their work, family and personal demand. It’s
more subjective, the change of person, demand of person in fulfilling their lifestyle
requires them to use wisely the resources surrounding to make their self happy and
have a harmony life. In the mean time, some people adopt the philosophy of
‘working to live’ (Delecta, 2011) which is working is the objective of their life and
some others consider on ‘living to work’ (Delecta, 2011), living is to work and we
still have prioritized things to fulfill the demand of the surrounding. Working
condition nowadays, company did have employees with many roles outside the
professional career makes those employee feel guilt (CAHRS, 2010) on their
extended roles. They would misses the grown up of their own child, they don’t have
pleasure time to being right servant to Allah, they would getting quarrel with the
spouse, there is no time to cook or prepare dinner for the family and others. In this
situation, many professional will decided to quit their professional career to fulfilling
those extended demand (Brown, 2010). They have to release one role to fully
attention to the other role. Studies that being report in European Agency for Safety
and Health at Work also mention there is significant number of employees have
difficulties in performing family duties, 22% reported that they are too tired from
work for household chores, and 10% reported that time spent at work affects their
family responsibilities. Approximately 50% of workers perceived that family and
work time demands overlapped due to pressure at work and/or at home.

Other than that, work life balance always being discussed in term of working
time (part time, term time), the flexible working hours scheme, the job sharing
arrangements, the maternity and paternity leave agreement, the emergency of caring
dependants, parental leave agreement, paid time off, the team culture and working
time policy. The flexibility organization always concern on people that able to
success, when they have everyday flexibility to meet the demands of their
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professional life and accomplish the extra demand outside their career. It enable
employee to have control and influence the own quality of life.

Factors of Work Life Balance

The major variables that could contribute to work life balance are individual,
organizational and societal factors (Chitra & Sheela, 2012, Poulose & Sudarson,
2014).

The Individual Factor

Poulose & Sudarsan (2014) proposed three categories in individual factor in

term of personality, well being and emotional intelligence.

Personality

In personality aspect focusing on Big Five factor model. In human resource

professionals use this big five model personality to determine the employee
placement (Srivastava, 2015). The dimensions consider the individual traits that
make up individual’s overall personality. According to survey done by Kaur (2013),
investigate the relationship between work life balance, satisfaction with life and
personality dimension, result found work life balance had significant correlation to
satisfaction of life, extroversion and openness dimension had positive relationship
with agreeableness and conscientiousness

Priyadharshini & Wesley (2014) research towards 205 IT’s employees result
personality dimensions extroversion, conscientiousness and openness significantly
effect the work life program and agreeableness predict work life conflict. But
neurotic dimension do not correlate with work life balance.

The dimensions are; i) Openness – related to individual that are open minded,
ready for new things or experience, intelligence, imaginative, creative on their life
and have wide variety of interest. ii) Conscientiousness – those people in
conscientiousness is the reliable and prompt, goal oriented, neat and orderliness, high
responsibility and hardworking. iii) Extraversion is very energetic person, they had
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specific plan on their duty, easy to attract with others, get motivation from the
surrounding environment and enthusiastic. iv) Agreeableness – these individuals are
friendly and compassionate, easy to cooperate, forgiveness, kindness and trust. v)
Neuroticism sometimes called emotional stability, person with this personality
always involved in negative emotions, easily involve in instability emotion such as
moody, tension and worry. Basically, the personality will define how people react
and deal with the situation. The ability of person in making decision in making sure
it wouldn’t effect the surrounding. The big five personality build in person through
their upbringing, the external factor contribute minor chances in making decision.

Studied done by Devadoss & Minnie (2013) results, openness personality

leads to balance work life, they are ready to handle the multiple roles, followed with
conscientiousness and extraversion and agreeableness, the neuroticism doesn’t care
directly towards work life balance it encourage them to have imbalance work life.
Different with research result by Chitra & Sheila (2012) survey conducted to 300
women employee at various age groups and designation at Chennai found that there
is no significant relationship between openness, conscientiousness, extroversion and
emotional stability towards work-life balance, but there is positive correlation
between agreeableness and work-life balance. The work life balance would depend
on the situation and culture of the nation. The agreeableness person easy going and
ready to cooperate in any situation, they more ready in facing the challenging in life
balance.

Employee Wellbeing

The other aspect of individual is employee’s wellbeing, it’s related to

physical, psychological and employee’s mental health (MacLeod & Nikita, 2014),
the common disorder such as anxiety or depression (CAHRS, 2010) and impaired
wellbeing (EU-OSHA, 2012). Employee involvement in organization success affect
employee wellbeing (Chenoweth, (2011), World Health Organization’s (WHO)
defined employee wellbeing is correlate with mental health which everybody realizes
his or her have their own potential enable them to cope with the normal stresses of
life, able to work productively and contribute to the community (MacLeod & Clarke,
2014).
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Conflict between work-life significant effect to individual health, it may goes

to poorer mental and physical health, less life satisfaction, higher levels of stress,
higher levels of emotional exhaustion, less physical exercise, higher likelihood to
engage in problem drinking, increased anxiety and depression levels, poor appetite
and fatigue (EU-OSHA, 2013). They face lower personal accomplishment, emotional
exhaustion and depression.

Work life imbalance affect the wellbeing (Delecta, 2011), the problems as
dissatisfaction from life, sadness, guilty give effect to person around us. The person
with stressful couldn’t able to identify the problem and matter. When the situation
prolonged, the person will try in using drugs or alcohol to heal the error that had been
choose. Supposedly, in this situation, people have to find their strength to settle the
situation and try to change immediately the matter that wouldn’t prolonged.

Argued by Cooper (2014), high psychological wellbeing leads to positive

individual outcome such as commitment, morale and health, which in turn leads to
improvement in organizational and performance such as productivity, customer
satisfaction, lower turnover and sickness.

Employee’s with good health condition give affect to the job productivity, it’s
proven by the empirical study done by Lowe (2006) towards 1525 respondents
reported 52 per cent of them, job stress significantly effect the physical problem for
the past 12 months and 42 per cent of them suffered mental problem resulted from
the stress. There is broader impact on health related to work stress, more than one in
five respondent consult professional for the mental and physical health problem
(Lowe, 2007).

As to increase the employee productivity, the organizations have to concern

in improving the health status and well-being of their employees (Chenoweth, 2011).
Lower performance organization often do not understand the potential power of the
health-and work behaviour (Chenoweth, 2011), its mean health (wellbeing), work
behaviour and value of human capital are related. The organization decided to
separate between health care and work productivity will bear indirectly on the
financial liability such as medical cost.
 17

Chenoweth (2011) mention employee health status directly influence

employee work behaviour, work attendance and on the job performance. It shows on
his report, employee in good well-being condition will increase the performance,
able to accomplish the task in the accurate manner and able to prepare the task
without defect or reject. The unhealthy worker will impact their work attendance and
work behaviour. Employee with ‘always’ or ‘sometimes’ caused from the health
status influence employee health behaviour. Example such as, employee that need to
have frequently monitor the health status in the health institutions significantly effect
the work attendance, which sometimes they won’t be able to return to workplace
after the check-up. Not to mention the work behaviour, the passion toward task and
job will automatically decrease, they do not able to keep track the task that had been
left, this also will affect to group member or unit related in making sure the flow of
task won’t affected. In certain situation, the colleague need to cover up the task left
or unfinished job. This kind of situation will involve in job overload, did effect the
other party, at the first phase do not involve in any unbalance well-being condition.
Once they need to cover the colleague task add up with current duty of theirs it could
influence to burnout and job stress. If these situations continue it significantly will
effect the productivity of whole organization.

Therefore, providing the healthier organization culture (Chenoweth, 2011)

with the tools to maintain their resilience encourages high levels of control and
personal responsibility, it can create a sustainable competitive advantage not is short
time (Cooper, 2014). An organization effort to improve quality of employees lives,
minimizing the decrease productivity resulting from chronic illness (Lowe, 2011)
tend to be physically and psychologically healthier than other employees. Creating
health culture organization takes passionate, persistent and persuasive leadership at
all level; from the top management to middle manage (Chenoweth, 2011). Certain
organization did have benefit on gymnasium membership, to make sure the
employee had time for leisure and maintain the health condition. Creating healthy
work culture couldn’t be done in a day, it requires a commitment and readiness from
all parties, it need to be done gradually than it easier to become the standard of
practice.

Despite implementing healthy worker program and organization productivity,

there is indirect cost organization have to think of due to the workplace accident
 18

(Lowe, 2011) such as financial costs, legal and insurance cost, loss of production
damage to the equipment, fines and investigation procedure in conjunction of
tiredness, fatigue or exhausted to perform the duty, estimated 20 per cents of
accidents on motorways are attributable to fatigue on their community (MacLeod and
Clarke, 2014). Gallup’s (2013) employee who engaged in their jobs generally has
healthier habits than who are disengaged.

According to Chenoweth (2011), build a healthy organizational culture

involve work environment; the physical work structure and employees perception.
Work environment involves safety policies, noise levels, lighting, air quality, and
ergonomically adapted equipment and furniture. More recently, the concept of the
work environment has been extended to include healthy eating options and updated
cafeteria menus, smoke-free policies and opportunities for physical activity.

Emotional Intelligence

Individual aspect also involve emotional intelligence which it’s closely

related to employee and organization behavior (Robbins & Judge, 2012), he defined
emotional intelligence is as an ability of individual in recognizing feeling and
understanding behavior in adapting the surrounding situation that involve with
emotions, the emotion information been used a guide to think and react through
behavior. Goleman (2003); Robbins & Judge (2012) said through emotional
intelligence its’ able to measure the skills of self awareness, self management and
interpersonal relationship management and recognize own emotions when
experienced. Emotions are group of psychological abilities knowledge and regulative
emotions (Robbins & Judge, 2012) result into better performance of person.
Emotional intelligence consists of feeling and acting on adoption the situation and
development by understanding people own emotions and others, they can manage
emotional cues and information to make decision.

Research by Sharma (2014) comprised to 55 working professional found

highly emotional intelligence of worker able to balance their work life roles. Normal
person with low emotional intelligence finds hard to adopt and sustain in unexpected
scenario. She also mention the emotional intelligence is a way of being smart, ready
in accepting the environment and know how to control the happiness, sadness, anger,
disgust, guilt (CAHRS, 2010) and those related to emotions feeling, by that the
 19

action taken based on emotion doesn’t effect the other party or their self in the future.
The result also found individual with emotional intelligence able to balance the
corporate and social responsibility effectively will enjoy the job satisfaction and
personnel edge. Imbalance to manage emotionally and socially responsibility are
failed in their respective areas.

Studies by Kumar & Rajaram (2012) toward employees in educational

intuitional also found emotional intelligence correlate with work life balance. They
agreed to balance in the work life with multiples and redundant of roles and to make
it successful, the emotional intelligence is pre-requisite. With the emotional
intelligence individual is ready to manage the work environment and the personal
life. There is difference between teaching and non teaching staffs, 60 per cent of
teachers (the professional level) more competent in balancing their both needs and
responsibility especially related to corporate responsibility examples the teaching
learning process, research work guiding, project exam arrangement, student
counseling and etc. their extra responsibilities as an social obligations and duties
towards their family members, friends, relative and college during working hours.

Emotional intelligence is the right tools to manage the relationship between

success at work and external demand of roles. It’s being proven by the study done by
Dasgupta (2010) consisted of 30 female of Informational Technology worker, the
result found with emotional intelligence, individual able to control their perception of
role conflict and reduces the stress. The quality of work life and happiness
contributes towards achieving higher quality of work life and greater perceived and
happiness

The Organizational factors

The mass changes of organization forces by the external environment

demands (political, economic, social, technology, legal and other environment) of
forces contribute to intense pressure, constant deadlines and organization
restructuring system. The characteristic of organization consists of formalization,
specialization, and decision making (Luthan & Doh, 2012), in adapting changes,
organization required employees to align with them towards achieving the company
mission. The various work life conflicts correlate with organizational and individual
outcome (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014).
 20

Luthan & Doh (2012) agreed the formalization organization defined as a

structures and system in organization toward the decision making, communication
and controlling. The controlling system in organization being applied through
standard of practices (SOP), code of conduct, standard regulation or might be
policies. With the formalization it’s enabling for the company to create the
organization structure that become a standard practice throughout the whole
organization. The specialization is how the task being structure to the individual and
how well the task being defined by the employee. There is horizontal and vertical
specialization management, the horizontal condition means the delegation of
responsibility and duties to others within the same line authority, in example one
being assigned to human relations, a second to operations and third is accounting.
However, no manager has authority over another. In vertical management one
manager has authority over another; they report the same output or result to the top
management. In examples, one manager may be assigned to human resources, a
second to operation, and a third to accounting, but all three must answer to the
president. Vertical specialization occurs in organization grows, more complex and
required commitment of individual to cope with additional workload. Discussing in
characteristic of organization, the organization had to decide the decision making
rules by whom, in the context of centralization the important decisions are made by
the top of management. The decentralization system, the decision making system
encourage every level of employee have authority on their task; enable them to make
decision on their own task and responsibility towards it.

Those organization characteristics create the systematic work flow, authority

toward task and duties and groups of individual working together towards achieving
a common goal. The process, relationship and system in organization also able to
design and promoting the work life balance practise.

Report by Government of Alberta, Canadian organization bare for the costs

of work life conflict, it increased absenteeism, employee turnover, health costs, and
managerial stress by the same it reduced the productivity, reduced job satisfaction
and exist of problematic family/social relationship.
 21

The Work Arrangement

Discussion the work arrangement, Poulose & Sudarson (2014) suggested the
flexible working hour arrangement. Flexible working hour refer to working schedule
that is outside from the normal working hour pattern. Instead of repetitive or fixed
working hour, the flexible working hour enable employee to have their own time
when or where they are required to work (Acas, 2015). Flexible work arrangement
(FWA) are alternatives to the traditional 9-5 work day and the standard work week,
most of the reason employees want FWA to accomplish the multiple roles; family
responsibilities and work life balance (Subramaniam et. al, 2014). The example of
flexible working schedule, employee working hour daily 8 hours per day, accumulate
to 40 to 42 hours a week, the flexible working hour being practice when one
employee may arrive at 7 am and leave 3 pm, while another arrive at 9 am and leaves
at 5 pm, but both must be at compulsory at core working time within 10am to 2 pm.
To become it’s a culture in the organization; it could apply in the policy. All
employees being notify, agree and accept the compulsory thing; the core working
hour and being at workplace for about 8 hours, flexible with employees time table.

There is reason employee want FWA being practices in their organization is

because of the family responsibilities and work life balance (Liechty & Anderson,
2007). The introduction of the Children and Families Act in United Kingdom (UK)
2014 is a milestone for the organization in UK apply the practices of work life
balance policies, employees has right to request the flexible working hour once they
have work for the organization for more than 26 hours. Even though many UK
organization had apply the flexi hour before the Enactment of Children and Families
Act. Until now, flexible working has been perceived by some as a privilege only
reserved for certain employees – mainly working mother (Tatum, 2014). As working
trends nowadays an increasing in dual earner families (EU-OSHA, 20120;
Subramaniam et. al. 2014) the privileged of flexi working hour could implement
broadly since the responsibilities for the family also carried by the man / father of the
family. Many economist and policy makers argue that workplace flexibility could be
a major tool to retain talent and women in the labour market (Subramaniam et. al.
2014).
 22

There is debate based on gender when discussing on work arrangement, the

flexible working hour especially for the married women with a child. Studies had
found there is no significant on women time spent at home, Studies done by Tatum
(2014), 56 per cent of young mother are desperate for more flexibility at work and
one of the respondent mentioned the employer allow her to have the flexibility hour
but needs to dropped two pay scales, and certain of them have no choice to become
self-employed.

Studies found household workload on child care responsibilities need more

time differ than carrying elderly or relative. The gender gap had relative to the
gender roles and inequality in time spent of doing household task. Men seem less
doing household duties which women thought they had many duties related to
household. This may form to work family conflict, report by European Agency for
Safety and Health at work found 27% of workers in the EU perceived that they spend
too much time at work; 28% felt that they spend too little time with their families; 36
% felt that they do not have enough time for friends and other social contacts and
51% believed that they do not have enough time for their own hobbies and interests.
Women always report they had little time for daily activities whereas men perceived
that they spend too much time at work. The organization policy towards work life
balance will create long term employee relationship (Yanchus, et. al 2013),
organizational citizenship and more harmonious balance between their work
responsibilities (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014) and their personal interests (it
may goes the best practices to retain the professional as our talent employee

The alternative of work arrangement helps to reduce work life conflict in

public sector. In reducing work life conflict and enhance work life balance, othe
aspect may being done by the organization is apply compressed the work on the
week (Poulose & Sudarson, 2014), this need to have the commitment among
management level and immediate superior in compressing work in a week related to
the ability to balance personal, family and work demands. Compressed workweeks
imply work schedules with fewer, but longer workdays. The number of worked hours
per week is the same. It could be four 12-hour shifts with three or four days off. This
gives more days without work, less commuting time, but also longer workdays (EU-
OSHA, 2012). The application of compressed working hour required employee to
have an ability to perform work in pursuit the date line, they need be adaptable, multi
 23

skilled and very high speed to accomplish the task. For example, an employee
working one extra hour a day earns approximately one day off in every two week
cycles, an employee adding a certain number of minutes to each workday receives
one off day. Common practise was extra working hour will be paid as an overtime
paid, but in this situation those extra hour being calculated to be equivalent for one
day off. This practice does not fit to all job position, especially duties that need to be
at workplace required the physical existing. To apply compressed work hour also had
to being monitored closely to calculating the extra time being taken.

The government of Malaysia had applied the flexible working hour and
improvement in policies (Azlinzuraini et. al, 2014). In mean time, it’s still so much
effort need to be done by the organization to apply the flexible working hour.

Work Life Policies and Program

In maintaining and sustain the competitive advantage of the organization, the

organization should willing to hear employee’s needs, need of the quality work life
balance. The nearest to the staff is the immediate superior or line manager, to
implement the policies (Azlinzuraini, 2014; Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014)) and
program of work life balance in the organization and in avoiding the work life
conflict. Immediate superior are playing important roles in identifying the needs of
the employee. Human Resource Management practice significantly shift from
centralized decision making at senior management levels to decentralized devolved
responsibility at line manager level (Luthan & Doh, 2012).

According to Azlinzuraini, 2014, work life balance policies designed

formally by the Human Resource Director or manager that adopted every
organizational level. However, the practices at every unit level being implemented
and managed by line manager and supervisor or the immediate superior (Ryan &
Kossek, 2008; Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014). Even though practices of work life
balance policy depending on the line manager across different organization
units/section, manager and location, it is necessary for the organization to have the
principle guideline of policies and the responsibility goes to immediate superior in
maintaining it but in the meantime if the regulation affected to the employees it’s
 24

suggested to contact the Human Resource Department to make it clear on the rules
(Aston University, 2015).

In implementing work life balance policies, company should ask, did their
organizational culture ready for work/life initiatives (Lockwood, 2003), according to
her, it’s important to know the organization culture is it ready to support work/life
programs. The work/life program need support from senior management which the
environment able to look on the bigger perspective of acceptance. The corporate
culture need to be apply in the organization to encourage employees to look at
business in different way (support and accepts) others as an individuals with
priorities beyond the workplace.

Study revealed company did have work/life benefit programs bring greater
commitment, less work/family conflict and less intention to leave (Azlinzuraini,
2014). It’s correlate between work attitudes and perceived managerial support (Smith
& Gardner, 2007). In applying the work life balance program, managers have to be
creative in making sure the individual task wouldn’t effect. The accepted by the
colleagues and understanding of the department enable the smoothness practice of
the programs and give employees more control over their schedules and greater
flexibility to manage work and family life (Major & Morganson, 2011).

Segregation of Duties

Appropriate segregation of duties should be mention in company policies, the

senior management played an important role to review, revise and enforce the policy
as significant of changes that occur in organization. As the business functions
influence by the external environments and demands, organization has to be ready in
controlling the segregation of duties.

According to (Gramling, 2010), segregation of duties is a basic key internal

control and one of the most difficult to accomplish. Internal control responsibilities
will be arranged when there is increased dispersion of such responsibilities among
multiple individuals and work groups. The segregation of duties is control the duties
of person in the processes, controls and reporting structures of organizational units.
The segregation of duties also in making sure the system environment of duties being
separating not to override by other party that have no right into it and to ensure the
 25

secret and confidentially of the business function under control. Most of author
mention segregation of duties related to financial transaction, business coding that
compulsory to have application of security code, without specified role function the
secret and confidential might goes lowest level of security. Even though,
organization concern on financial secret, but the strategic planning of organization
should be keep it secretly (Raisinghanil & Goswami, 2014).

Job Demand-Resources Model

Job characteristics related to the work environment classified into two

categories; job demand and job resources, the job demand-resource (JD-R) model
(Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). The model can be used to determine employee burnout
and engagement. The model tells the assumptions of every occupation may have
causes to employee well-being. Both of characteristic may cause to physical,
psychological, organizational and societal effect. Studies found high job demands
significantly effect the employee’s mental and physical that leads into weakening of
energy and health problems which need struggling the effort and skills towards
achieving task demand and organizational goals .

In contrast a job resource is aspect of the job associate with job demands. It’s
engage with functional to achieve the work goals, the potential of individual
motivation stimulate to employee and work, performance feedback and social
support (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). Job resources also related to job security, team
climate, role clarity and autonomy in valuing the employee right in combating the
negative effect of job demands. The hypothesis of higher job demand, lower job
resources will result job strain, demotivated, burnout and other negative aspect effect
to those three aspects (psychology, physiology and spiritual)
 26

Job Demand - Resource Model

Job resources directly related with intrinsic (individual spiritual) and extrinsic
motivation (external factor). Motivation is the driven forces to make people willing
to do something and achieve what they suppose to gain (Ayesha, 2015). Rapidly
changes of labour market, motivating employees needs creativity among
organization. To increase employee productivity, the monetary basis need is not
really compulsory for certain employee. Some of them concern on the working
environment, job satisfaction, organization relation, job interest, job schedule and
internal factor that being provided by the organization. The working environment
transformed the relation of working time and accessibility to work. Manager function
(Ayesha, 2015, Azlinzuraini, 2014) in contributing motivation aspect to the
employee will obtain to retain, protect the valuable competitive advantage.

Correlate with job demand-resource model, high motivation influences by the

organization and employee acceptation will lead to high work engagement, increase
positive performance feedback and gain social support (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007).
Chamorro-Premuzic (2013), synthesize the findings from 92 quantitative studies
indicate the association between salary and job satisfaction is very low, correlation
between pay and pay satisfaction is marginal higher. The result indicates that money
is clearly not the answer to motivate employee because money couldn’t buy
 27

engagement. Research carried out by Kovach (1987) in thesis done by Ayesha

(2015), even 28 years ago a similar phenomena exist, he had suggest as employees’
income increases, money become less of motivator, he suggest the motivational
factors: (a) interesting work, (b) full appreciation of work done, and (c) feeling of
being in on things.

Survey done by Yunchas et. al (2013) to veteran , in finding out the employee
perception of job demand and resources towards relationship to engagement showed
job resources and job satisfaction given impact to employee engagement, means
employee had motivation to keep working, based on their experience and external
surrounding (decision-making authority, support from supervisors and support from
colleagues, job control, organization-based self-esteem, and management quality,
positive challenges at work, social support from superior, fair, empowering
leadership, and social climate in the workplace) that encouraging them to fulfill the
job demands.

Imbalance job demand-resource significantly effect the work engagement

(Yanchus, 2013) that will result of burnout (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). Motivating
jobs (high demands and high resources) will bring fewer consequences to burnout
stages; able to create positive work outcomes. Job that cause stress, high in demands
and low necessary resource will result burnout to.

Role Related Factors

According to Mohd Kamel (2011), studies done among Malaysia Public

University Academic found role overload and role ambiguity predict employee strain
overt time but not role conflicts. Role overload exist when expectations towards roles
are greater than the individual capabilities and motivation to perform the task. Role
ambiguity related to individual have no clear picture, authority, knowledge towards
their responsiveness of task and role conflict is inappropriate role expectation and
demand.

Mohd Kamel (2011) agreed the job demands will encourage employee put an
effort to take challenging of task, as long it’s within the capabilities and that can lead
to increasing productivity. However if the situation vice versa, it will lead to feeling
of strain. Strain occurs mainly because of fatigue that results from pressure to
 28

comply with the set of demands. Strain is individual feeling affected through
emotional exhaustion and lack of energy.

Career Management

Discuss by Brown (2010), married women in the professional level decide to

slow down the career movement even company provide the work life practise. This
because certain of them decided to leave the company after giving birth especially,
worried of the infant healthcare or childcare. But it’s still in debate by many
organizations (Subramaniam, 2015).

Rewards system also can encourage to the success of work life balance
program, the increasing of productivity, reduced the absenteeism and increasing job
satisfaction (Raisinghanil and Goswami, 2014). Employees do have the right to being
promoted, increase increment or any other benefits (awards, recognition, parties and
etc.). By these, it will increase the level of employee engagement towards
organization and company do able to plan employees career success.

The Societal Factor

Social factor in work life balance refer to the environment and surrounding of
the company or organization. Companies have to identify employees need on work
life balance compatible with the culture of a country. There is difference application
of work life balance practices between United State and European Union (Joshi, et.al,
2002) United State applications on work life balance have little involvement from the
government, the company concern in keeping the competitive advantage and
potentially to increase loyalty. The European Union country impose strict regulation
unable the company to do flexibility on the work life balance program. The United
State company have own authority in developing and implementing work life
balance programs, there is no single rule need to be a guidance but it goes to needs of
employees. In Europen Union countries they had recommending policy able to
represent different culture and region. The current cultural, political, and social
framework of the U.S. and the EU leads to different rationales for implementing
work-life programs.
 29

Return on Investment

Work life balance practice is part of the company investment toward employee, it
show the ability of company to concern of employee need outside the workplace at
the same increase company productivity. Organization often will look into return
they gain after the investment been applied such in financial or non-financial
justification (Joshi, et. al, 2002). The benefit of practice work life balance related to
human resources, it’s basic method in attracting and retaining the employee. Other
than that, it’s creating mutual understanding between employer and employee,
increase the workplace and job engagement. The understanding lead to satisfaction
of employee to fulfil the external demand, in turns it bring benefit to company which
is able to lowered turnover rate, stronger team spirit and loyalty.

The work life balance program give return to company on cost of recruiting
and training. To recruit and get staff that similar to employee who have quit is not
easy, even more to train the employee to become skilful worker.

Demography

According to Dike (2013), diversity of labour market nowadays, gives bigger

impact to the development of organization. Therefore, employees diversity needs to
be manage accordingly by the organization. The workforce diversity with diverse
demand especially on satisfy work-life roles, organization need to be more
passionate to implement the quality of work life balance programs.

Rana & Seema (2012) found demographic factor influence critical factors of
work life balance practise, employees with work experience between age 18-23 often
took time off for family support, study leave or training leave and the time spent with
other people (Lavanya & Thangavel, 2014). Employees do have children below than
five (5) years old dire need the practise of work life balance in the organization. They
insist to get the privilege of flexible work arrangement enable them to control their
own time towards job, where and when to gets job done. Some of them may
preferred compressed work week to have the extra time with the family when the
jobs done.

Lavanya & Thangavel, (2014) said older employees used many dependent
policies (childcare, elder care, paid maternity leave and related). He said married
 30

employees are likely to use the policies compared unmarried employees. Many
researcher, surveyed mention married women much in need of the work life balance
programs, to enable them in fulfilling dual responsibility at home and work
compared to men. The policies in organization should able to concern in enhancing
employee professional life, benefit to the company and help in retain the women
employees. Enable to achieve engaged workforce that would create productivity
organization. She added that, women often use spontaneous off (time off, emergency
leave) to fulfil extended demand (family roles especially). Research done by
(Delecta, 2011) younger employee used more work life balance initiatives than old
employees and supporting staff chosen to have for emergency leave and paid
maternity leave to balance their external needs.

Achieving Work Life Balance

There are many ways for organization to create work-home basis, the
understanding and acceptance from the employer encourage employee to serve
wholehearted to the organization. As an Asean Culture, the “repay” practices
common to individual.

People always complaint they had no enough time (Lockwood, 2003) to fit
with all the commitment and responsibilities. Every one of us do have 24 hours a day
and 7 days a week, which need to be allocate for basic need exercise, sleep, social
event, work demand, family demand and personal pursuits (Garwitch, 2010).
Therefore the time management skills is needed to make it all demands in balance,
do not harm the individual. Effective time management will reduce stress and bring
balance to life in and out the office.

Employees need to be train to set the priorities on their roles, they had to be
able to identify the urgent and important thing, important but not urgent, urgent but
not important and not urgent and not important. People have to learn to say ‘no’. It’s
look alike people are trying avoiding to do thing, but in identify the priorities people
have a plan and schedule on their daily life enable them to allocate the ‘needs’
accordingly.
 31

Individual’s involved in work life balance acquire to stay flexible, able to

negotiate and accept other’s situation. Have to train them self to put their self in other
person's situation. Need to engage with other’s situation and less blaming, it brings
feeling of belonging and calm situation indeed.

Companies may apply optional ways to work, as organizations nowadays

move from centralization to decentralization system (Luthan & Doh, 2012), people
had authority and autonomy on their job responsibility. Organization encourage
employee to do the job on their comfort way, as long followed the standard practice,
this method helps them to be more productive and maintain their balance.

Delegating skills also involve in controlling the work stress, but people
common worried the task being delegate won’t achieved the expectation, do not trust
others to do the job. In making this success, people need to identify the right and
responsibility to handle the task. Do not give difficult task and make sure the person
being choose have the ability to do the task, or else it bring consequence where the
person need to re-do the task because it didn’t achieve the expectation.

Other strategies, employee can apply is maintain the boundaries and this
should notified by the company and others. People have to set the rule to others, in
example after working hour at 5 pm you wouldn’t be able to access especially
regarding the task unless it’s really urgent or emergency matter. After several time,
people around will respect the boundaries and you will happy on the rules that being
set.

Another alternative is the employee should have a schedule and things to do

list. By having this, person knows what they have to after this, what is not important
to do, enable to control them self, by having this also people wouldn’t miss the thing
that supposed to do. The working schedule will go smooth and relax; with the
principles the person need to follow what had been plan.
 32

Conclusion

Life is wonderful; by controlling our self we are able to manage our

environment and surrounding. There are many aspects fulfilling our life along with
work. Once people would able to balance their roles it goes imbalance (Delecta,
2011). Some people said we live once, the decision we’ve made on the young ages
bring significant affect to our long life. The imbalance of work life bring pressure to
people, the mixture roles required people to become creative in managing their life.

Once individual agree the contractual term with the organization, it doesn’t
mean the person have to sacrifice everything to achieve organization needs. In this
matter, the smart individual will take the advantage of skill in professional to succeed
in family roles. Some did mention, the role in work couldn’t work to apply at home,
but if he/she is an officer at the workplace did able to manage the subordinates,
schedule meeting with client and achieve organization target promptly. Those
individual should be able to manage the home schedule and the responsibility needs.
 33

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