Worklife Balance and Organizational Commitment of Generation Y EmployeesEvangelista, Marianne Joyce M.Lim, Eric Darryl N.Rocafor, Shirley C.Teh, Germaine Larisse Y.

Introduction

• Silent Generation (born: 1922-1945)▫ witnessed World War II, the Great Depression, the Cold War,

the bombing of Pearl Harbor (Young, 2007)• Baby Boomer (born: 1946-1964)

▫ born in the midst of events such as civil rights movements, the introduction of the birth control pill, rock and roll (Young, 2007)

• Generation X (born: 1965-1979)▫ fall of Berlin, and introduction of punk rock, rap and the

personal computer (Young 2007)Generation Y (born: 1980-2000)

▫ period when the internet, instant messaging, other technology and hip hop are prevalent (Young, 2007)

What we should know

•Characteristics of Generation Y ▫New and distinct ideas, behavior, &

characteristics (i.e. Self-entitlement)▫More loyal to their careers than to the

organization▫Best qualities: hunger for constant

learning & self-development▫Values worklife balance more as compared

to the other generations

What they say about Gen Y

Does worklife balance affect the organizational

commitment of Generation Y employees in the selected IT

firm in Metro Manila?

Statement of the Problem

• Worklife Balance- balance between work and family or life outside work (Yeandle, 2005; Millward, 2005). Fisher-McAuley, et al. (2003) described worklife balance as a competition for both time and energy between the different roles filled by an individual. It may be considered unbalanced for an individual when the amount of time causes some sort of conflict or stress in other areas of life.

• Organizational Commitment- the employee’s behavior intention to continually work for the organization rather than accepting another job that may offer potentially better socioeconomic benefits (Sheridan & Abelson, 1983).

Key Terms

Generation X and Y

Worklife Balance

Organizational

Commitment

Conceptual Framework

Generation X and Y

Worklife Balance- Work

interference with personal life

(WIPL)- Personal life

interference with work (PLIW)

- Work/personal life enhancement

(WPLE)

Organizational

Commitment- Affective

commitment- Normative commitment

- Continuance commitment

Operational Framework

•Quantitative Analysis▫Survey Questionnaires

3 component model of organizational commitment questionnaire, revised by Lee, Allen and Meyer (2001)

Worklife balance scale - “Psychometric Assesment of an Instrument Designed to Measure WorkLife Balance” Hayman (2005).

•Qualitative Data Analysis ▫Interview Guide

Method

•Respondents▫Survey Questionnaire:

all 94 employees of the selected IT firm▫Interview:

Human Resource team 10 employees (5 Gen Y, 5 Gen X)

Subjects and Sampling Procedure

Results

•Background of IT Firm▫Filipino-Chinese family owned▫Requires work six (6) days a week▫Saturday (training day)▫More Generation Y employees in Sales and

Technical Department

Results

▫Worklife Balance on Organizational Commitment

Results

Worklife Balance

Generation X and Generation Y (significant at p=0.04998)Significant for Generation X and insignificant for Generation Y

▫Generation Y Results highlights▫Worklife Balance

Overtime and Saturday is tiresome but necessary

Adequate company activities and events Felt trainings to be inadequate

Results

▫Generation Y Results highlights▫Organizational Commitment

Happy with Management, co-workers, and environment

Dissatisfied with pay Challenging tasks and responsibilities Desire for career advancement

Results

Discussion

•Worklife interference with personal life (WIPL)

Similarities Overtime is necessary (Cramption & Hodge,

2009) Differences:

Differences in reasons for overtime work (Alexander & James 2009)

Privilege of flexibility in work hours/schedule (X) Trainings perceived differently (Cubic Consulting,

2008)

Discussion: Worklife Balance

•Personal life interference with work (PLIW)

Similarities : Value importance of personal life Struggle to balance work and life considering 6-

day work week Differences :

The definition of personal life: time with family (X) vs. social life (Y)

proximity to residence (X)

Discussion: Worklife Balance

•Work/Personal life enhancement (WPLE) Similarities:

happy with office environment and relationship with management

Differences: expectations on job function: challenging and

personal growth (Y) vs. accustomed to/comfort (X) (Grillo, 2009)

Discussion: Worklife Balance

•Continuance Commitment (cost of leaving too high)

Similarities : reasons: economy, the work opportunity

available, and the precise uncertainty that comes with the new job (Terjesen, Vinnicombe, and Freeman, 2007)

Opportunity to get a higher salary Differences :

proximity of the workplace to their homes (X)

perceptions on availability of career advancement

Discussion: Organizational Commitment

•Normative Commitment (obligation to stay-moral imperatives)

Similarities: claim that they loyal to the

company: provides them work and compensation

Differences: “utang na loob” - referrals (X) Seize opportunities for career

advancement (Y) (D'Amato & Herzfeldt, 2008)

Discussion: Organizational Commitment

•Affective Commitment (employee’s attachment, involvement in, and identification with their employers)

Similarities: reason for loyalty: emotional attachment to

bosses & co-employees and the good work environment

Differences: “utang na loob” to their employers –

the company as a whole (X)

Discussion: Organizational Commitment

•Gen Y ▫ WLB insignificant effect on OC

Contributing factors: work environment, salary, career advancement

Characteristics of Generation Y• Desire to be independent• Techno-savvy• Impatient/ Sense of Immediacy• Demand for responsibility• Flexibility of work• Clearer expectations based on previous job

experience• Career planning• Self-entitlement

Making the Connection

•Worklife Balance significant on Organizational Commitment

Other variables might have pulled

up the scores

Making the Connection

•Generation Y employees do not consider worklife balance as a necessary factor to stay in a company

•Generation Y sees worklife balance as a given state or basic job consideration that must be already present

Conclusion

•Look into the company culture as a possible variable

•Comparing different departments (subcultures)

•Compare to same or another industry/size•Compare to another multinational

or local company•May also look into family businesses•Repackage compensation schemes

Recommendations