Candidate attraction is a top priority for many employers, but are these companies actually listening to what employees want? If your company doesn’t offer a good work/life balance, you may be missing out on top talent.
A new survey from global staffing firm Robert Half shows nearly three-quarters (74%) of employees polled said they’ve achieved a good to excellent work/life balance. Forty-three percent think it’s getting better compared to 3 years ago.
Best Work/Life Balance by City
Professionals in Nashville, Denver, Atlanta, Cincinnati, San Diego, and Raleigh reported the most dissatisfaction in their work/life balance. Employees in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco scored the highest marks.
“When employees can enjoy their personal lives alongside work responsibilities, they are happier and less stressed and bring their best efforts to the job,” said Paul McDonald, Senior Executive Director for Robert Half.
In fact, according to Robert Half research linking happy workers with higher productivity and increased loyalty, employees who felt they achieved symmetry between work and home were two times more likely to be happy on the job compared to those who reported they didn’t.
So, who should be responsible for work/life balance? Thirty-nine percent of employees think it’s the company’s job. But in a separate survey, 26% of business leaders said they believe achieving that balance is primarily the employee’s concern.
McDonald notes that management teams who support work/life balance recognize the benefits to their organization. “Companies that value the well-being of their employees are more likely to attract and retain skilled talent in today’s competitive hiring environment. Basically, happy and well-balanced workers mean less burnout and turnover.”
The infographic below shows the best and worst cities for work/life balance along and includes data tables by age and gender.
