Family-friendly workplace policies boost productivity

Family-friendly policies lead to increased productivity of employees in public organisations and may also enhance job satisfaction and commitment, finds a research.

What is more, the researchers found that the number of family-friendly policies does not seem to decrease employee turnover rates.

"I think getting help from the family-friendly policies would benefit families as well as society," said lead author of the study Kwang Bin Bae from the University of Texas at Dallas.

The study sampled 158 public organisations in South Korea and used a bundle of family-friendly policies, including maternity leave, child care leave, on-site child care, restriction of night duties and overtime work.

They investigated the relationship between family-friendly policies and organisational performance, voluntary turnover rate and labour productivity.

The authors said further exploration is needed to assess the relative strength of each family-friendly policy. They also want to study the effects in other cultures.

The study appeared in the journal Public Personnel Management.