Negotiating Work/Life Balance

The Experience of Fathers and Mothers in Ireland

Bibliographic Data

ID2634434
AuthorsEileen Drew (0000-0002-7867-5177, corresponding author), Gwen Daverth
Year2007
Volume38
Issue2
Pages65-81
Publication date2007-12-15
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueRecherches Sociologiques (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1782-1592 • E-ISSN: 2033-7485
PublisherOpenEdition (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4000/rsa.461
OpenAlexW2169813010
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited24

Working arrangements are still not sufficiently flexible to enable parents to manage their roles as workers and as carers and there remains a dearth of flexible working arrangements and work-life balance policies especially for fathers. This paper examines the degree of work/life balance among fathers, and mothers, employed in 5 major Irish organisations surveyed in 2002. It concentrates on the access to, and takes up of, flexible working time and leave arrangements by fathers and mothers and explores the impact of such arrangements on their careers and their attitudes towards work/life balance. Parents were asked about their actual and preferred childcare arrangements. The majority of fathers were able to rely upon the provision of care by the mother in their own home (an option that was available to only a small proportion of mothers). The paper concludes by discussing the kinds of work/life balance interventions/measures sought by fathers and mothers

Irish · Negotiation · Psychological intervention · Social science · Sociology · Work–life balance · Employment and Welfare Studies · Engineering · Psychology · Retirement, Disability, and Employment · Social Psychology · Work-Family Balance Challenges

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