More Work/Life Programs Provided

February 10 2004 - Employers are increasing provision of Work/Life programs, according to results from recent Mellon research.

Mellon Financial Corporation's Human Resources & Investor Solutions (HR&IS) study, Work/Life - A delicate balance, surveyed policies and practices in more than 600 organizations. Selected results were compared with its 1996 survey. The new survey found that:

• 81% of employers offer employee assistance programs - compared to 70% in 1996
• 54% now provide family sick days - up from 42 percent
• 35% of employers now offer domestic partner benefit - compared to a mere 6% in 1996.
• Additionally, the new survey results show that:
• 88% of employers offer work-related tuition reimbursement
• 55% provide general resource and referral services
• 47% provide unpaid family leave beyond the required FMLA
leave.

"Work/Life programs help employees manage the broader and more complex challenges and responsibilities they now face on the job and at home," said Mellon HR&IS principal Allison Levin. "And for employers, they usually provide a cost-effective way to energize and support key performers, especially during periods of economic uncertainty. Our survey found the most commonly cited reasons for offering work/life programs are to enhance recruitment efforts (73%), raise morale (74%), and remain competitive (72%)."

About one-half of respondents increased the number of work/life programs over the past two years, with only 5 percent reducing the number. Other significant findings from Mellon's HR&IS survey include:

• 71% of businesses surveyed offer flex-time - up from 32% in 1996.
• 50% of respondents offer telecommuting and work-at-home arrangements - compared to 9% in 1996.
• 44% of offer compressed work weeks - up from 16% in 1996.
• 86% have part-time employees (who work fewer than 1,000 hours per year) - compared to 50% in 1996.

The Mellon study also measured the popularity of work/life programs with employees. The most frequently used programs included:

• family sick days
• paid family leave
• on- or near-site child care centers
• on-site vaccinations, and
• credit unions.

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