Life Meets Work Blog

Need help convincing your boss to let you go part-time, job share or work from home?  Present scholarly research to help make your case.

Like this study, highlighted in the November issue of Working Mother magazine:

According to research from Wake Forest University School of Medicine, employees who had more flexibility at the office called in sick less often and felt more committed to their jobs.

The study was based on health survey information completed by 3,193 employees of a large multinational pharmaceutical company.  Results were reported in the Psychologist-Manager Journal.

The authors suggested several ways to create a culture of flexibility:

• Offer a variety of alternative work arrangements. The study’s results suggest that part-time, remote and flextime options may be especially useful in creating a culture of flexibility.

• Train managers and supervisors to be supportive of workers’ lives outside the office.

Wake Forest isn’t the only one to link flexibility and employee health.  The University of Minnesota and Penn State found related connections—specifically reduced stress and an increase in healthy behaviors such as eating well and exercising.

Posted by Jaime

Vacations are good for you. So says the New York Times. The June 7 issue of the paper included a piece on the health benefits of vacation, citing two long-term medical studies and several shorter observation studies.

One nine-year study tracked 12,000 men at high risk for coronary heart disease. Those who failed to take annual vacations had a 21% high risk of death from all causes and 32% higher likelihood of heart disease.

Another study tracked sleep quality and reaction time, before, during and after a vacation. Participants saw an 80% increase in reaction time during vacation, with residual increases of 30-40% after the trip was over. (Can you say ‘workplace safety?’)

But it’s not just vacation time that helps keep people healthy. The NYT didn’t address issues of flexible work and its impact on health. Researchers have concluded that not only do flexers benefit from less stress, but they make time for other healthy behaviors like exercise, nutrition, and (sound the trumpets) sleep.

The takeaway seems clear, our bodies need time to recharge—whether that means an extended break from work, or short spurts of long weekends and late morning arrivals. Or most glorious of all…both flex time and paid vacation.

Can’t you just see your health insurance costs dropping?

Posted by Jaime