Nearly a third (30%) of employees in Hong Kong admit they would consider leaving their current job to achieve better work-life balance, making it clear that Hong Kong businesses need to better understand the role work-life balance plays in their ability to attract and retain the best talent.
According to The State of Work-Life Balance in Hong Kong 2014 Survey, released by not-for-profit organisation Community Business, Gen Y and Z are two times more willing than baby boomers to leave their roles to achieve a better balance. Despite this clear demand, the survey findings highlight there is a discrepancy between how employees rate their work-life balance and their understanding of the impact that it makes on their happiness both inside and outside the workplace.
Matter of mindset
Of the 1,000 full-time employees surveyed in Hong Kong, a significant 40% believe that work-life balance is not a factor affecting their happiness at work, while 35% believe that it does not impact their happiness outside of work. According to Fern Ngai, Chief Executive, Community Business, this may come down to a matter of mindset whereby employees have resigned to the view that it is not possible to change how one works within a culture of long working hours and need for face time.
She explained, “Work-life balance is a key link to employee engagement and individuals who are not able to achieve it are at risk of burnout or demotivation. The mismatch identified by the survey between employees’ rating of their work-life balance and the impact on their work and personal happiness could be explained by employees not feeling comfortable to speak out and to suggest changes to their workplace cultures.”
This feeling of lack of empowerment of employees is shown by the fact that 18% of respondents felt they did not feel comfortable to raise concerns about the work-life balance if they wanted to get ahead in their organisation, while almost a third (30.7%) said that the subject was not even talked about in their company.
It seems this argument is not one sided, as Ngai highlighted the fact that whilst many employees are unwilling to voice their opinions on the subject of work-life balance, the vast majority of organisations are unwilling to take the bold steps necessary to adapt to the new way of working and to foster a more trusting culture with flexible working options. She did suggest, however, that these dynamics must start to change as today’s baby boomers retire and are replaced by a workforce dominated by the younger generations who are much more outspoken and committed to achieving their ideal work-life balance. She warned, “If companies are not thinking strategically about creating a culture that values and supports their employees’ work-life balance, they will risk being uncompetitive in the labour market, and will miss out on the business benefits.
Championing change
And with one of the lowest levels of employee engagement in Asia Pacific, and one of the greatest talent shortages in the region, it may be time for HR to challenge the cultural status quo. The need for change is further demonstrated by the fact that the score given by Hong Kong employees for the extend to which they have achieved their ideal work-life balance has remained at 6.1 out of 10 since last year and has not changed significantly over the past eight years, ranging from 5.7 to 6.2.
So what can they do to help achieve equilibrium? In order to raise awareness of work-life balance as a critical business issue, Community Business has been engaging the business sector through educational workshops, training sessions and consultancy work. In addition, the annual Work-Life Balance Week campaign, which has been running for the past seven years, brings together companies across Asia to demonstrate their commitment towards work-life balance through various activities and initiatives during the week. To help companies move forward, the not-for-profit has also introduced more stringent criteria for participation in 2014, requiring organisations to have formal written policies on their work-life balance options and on flexible working arrangements, instead of focusing on one-off measures.
No quick fix
Robin Bishop, Director, Corporate Responsibility, Community Business added that in order to fully tackle issue of work-life balance in the workplace and make meaningful changes that bring about positive long-term results, organisations must look beyond the quick wins and take a more strategic approach to bringing about change. Whilst she applauds efforts, such as introducing yoga classes and massages into the workplace or providing healthy snacks such as fruit for staff, to promote a healthy lifestyle, she suggested that offering employees the option of flexible working hours, working from home or even part-time job sharing as some of the measures that companies might consider in order to bring about more long term benefits to staff.
She added that whilst this may be more challenging for some industries such as retail and hospitality, which are non office based, it is important for organisations to address the need to improve the work-life balance in Hong Kong and be clear about their objectives and the KPIs they aim to achieve. She concluded that even with a lower number of participating companies (78) than in previous years, she is encouraged by the number of organisations which are clearly taking a more committed and strategic approach to the matter, reaping the benefits that a supportive culture and flexible work programme can have on their bottom line.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
