Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Negotiation In Workplace Environments, Lauren Cina

Communication Senior Capstone Projects

The communication concept of negotiation is prevalent in our world today, and it is especially evident in the workplace. To be successful in navigating relationships within the workplace, employees must possess negotiation skills. Conflict is inevitable, so the ability to see the other party’s perspective and loosen your hold of positions is essential in negotiation. Negotiation should be less about argumentation and “winning” and instead it should be more about mutual gain. Trust and power differences in supervisor/subordinate relationships play a role in negotiations and, formality in these managerial relationships does not always mean more productive problem solving. Researchers discovered …

The Reset: Connecting Internal Crisis Communication Strategy With Post-Pandemic Remote Worker Populations Through An Employee Engagement Framework, Erin Leigh Black

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In the post-pandemic workforce, unprecedented events are the new normal. Although the remote worker revolution has been rumored for decades, in early 2020, the idea became an instant reality when global governments closed their borders, instituted lockdown, and ordered citizens to shelter-in-place (Weideman & Hofmeyr, 2020). Given the global shift in work, organizations have an immediate need to communicate with the crisis-ladened, post-pandemic, remote workforce; however, there is a sizable gap in research between internal crisis communication and the post-pandemic remote worker population. Through a phenomenologically based, interpretive analysis of current strategic and crisis communication research and frameworks, this project …

The Work-Family Interface, Erin K. Holmes, Clare R. Thomas, Richard J. Petts, E. Jeffrey Hill

Faculty Publications

In this chapter, we focus on the work-family interface using an ecological systems framework and three other related theories: boundary theory, role theory, and gender theory. We then introduce the literature on the work-family interface and focus our attention on the experiences of work-to-family and family-to-work conflict, work-to-family and family-to-work spillover, work-to-family and family-to-work crossover, workplace flexibility, parental leave policies, and day-care arrangements. We further recognize that cultural characteristics imbedded in different regions and countries moderate dimensions of the work-family interface. We have emphasized research in multiple countries and regions where such cross-cultural research was available.

Do Workplace Characteristics Moderate The Effects Of Attitudes On Father Warmth And Engagement?, Erin Kramer Holmes, Richard J. Petts, Clare R. Thomas, Nathan L. Robbins, Tom Henry

Faculty Publications

Though many fathers want to be warmer, more nurturing, and more actively involved than prior generations (i.e., the new fatherhood ideal), they also embrace a father's traditional role as financial earner. Thus, we hypothesized that fathers' attitudes about their roles would likely interact with workplace characteristics to produce variations in father warmth and engagement. Using a national sample of 1,020 employed U.S. fathers with children ages 2–8 years old, results suggest that adherence to the new fatherhood idea was associated with less father warmth. Also consistent with prior research showing that family friendly work cultures may enable fathers to be …

Walking A High Beam: The Balance Between Employment Stability, Workplace Flexibility, And Nonresident Father Involvement, Jason T. Castillo, Greg W. Welch, Christian M. Sarver

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Compared with resident fathers, nonresident fathers are more likely to be unemployed or underemployed and less likely, when they are employed, to have access to flexible work arrangements. Although lack of employment stability is associated with lower levels of father involvement, some research shows that increased stability at work without increased flexibility is negatively related to involvement. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 895), the authors examined the relationship between nonresident fathers’ employment stability, workplace flexibility, and father involvement. Results indicate that workplace flexibility, but not employment stability, is associated with higher levels of …

Family Security Insurance: A New Foundation For Economic Security, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center, Berkeley Center On Health, Economic & Family Security, Uc Berkeley School Of Law

Published Reports

A report released by Georgetown Law's Workplace Flexibility 2010 and the Berkeley Center on Health, Economic & Family Security (Berkeley CHEFS) outlining a blueprint for establishing and financing a new national insurance program to provide wage replacement for time off for health and caregiving needs. The report describes the need among working Americans for time off from work to address personal illness, to care for a new child, or to care for a loved one with a serious illness. It argues that the need for time off is no longer an issue for individual families or select industries, but a …

Sleep, Bmi, And Work-Family Conflict: A Gender Comparison Of U.S. Workers, Blake Lee Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This study used structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine how sleep problems, Body Mass Index (BMI), and poverty were related to several work, personal, and family variables in a sample of married male and female workers in the United States. The data for this study came from the National Study of the Changing Workforce (NSCW) 2008. This large, nationally representative dataset provided a resource for examining potential gender differences in variables that have been linked to sleep problems and increases in BMI, as well as how each of these variables relate to several work, personal, and family life outcomes, including …

Federal Employees Part-Time Career Employment Act Of 1978: Overview, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

The Federal Employees Part-Time Career Employment Act aims to utilize the potential of persons who do not work a traditional forty-hour workweek. Having found that part-time permanent employment has a number of benefits,i Congress passed legislation extending part-time career employment opportunities throughout the federal government in 1978.

A Timeline Of The Evolution Of Retirement In The United States, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

This document provides key highlights in the history of retirement in the United States. It provides some background on how the concept of retirement, and its legal treatment, has evolved. This time-line does not include every law related to pension and retirement plans. Rather, it emphasizes those laws that have come to shape how we view retirement, particularly the tax laws that encouraged employers to establish pension and retirement plans in the first place.

Benefits, Rights And Features Nondiscrimination Testing And Phased Retirement Programs, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

Various studies indicate that formal phased retirement programs within defined benefit plans are wanted and needed by both employers and employees. Phased retirement programs may be useful for employees who want to reduce their hours during later stages of their careers, but who wish to remain in the workforce. For employers, a phased retirement program may be a useful tool to retain talented employees who may otherwise fully retire.

In designing phased retirement programs, It is not surprising that many employers wish to have significant discretion in deciding which employees they will seek to retain through a phased retirement program. …

Early Retirement Incentive Plans And The Age Discrimination In Employment Act, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

Early retirement incentive plans (ERIP) “seek to give incentives to older employees to retire before conventional retirement age. The purpose of these programs is to cut back on salaries and benefits to make way for younger workers.” While some ERIPs might constitute a prohibited act under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the statute provides an affirmative defense for employers who can prove that the plan is voluntary and “consistent with the purposes” of the Act.

Some commentators have suggested that one way to encourage employers to establish bona fide phased retirement programs within their qualified pension plans is …

Phased Retirement Benefits And Final Full Retirement Calculations: Open Issues, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

This document briefly describes two issues relating to the final, full retirement benefit for individuals who receive a phased retirement distribution from a defined benefit plan: 1) whether and how any phased retirement distribution would offset the final full retirement benefit, and 2) the form of the payment of the final, full retirement benefit.

Phased Retirement Data Sheet, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

This data sheet includes information on current coverage and participation by American workers in pension and retirement plans. It also includes information on what employees say they want in terms of flexible work arrangements and access to pension and retirement funds, as well as what employers say they need with regard to the workforce of the future.

Workplace Flexibility: A Norm Of The American Workplace, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

A PowerPoint slide-show that outlines the challenges, options, policies, solutions, and innovations associated with Flexible Work Arrangements.

Selected Resources On Flexible Work Arrangements For Lower-Wage Workers, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

A list of resources for low-wage workers regarding flexible work arrangements.

Legal And Research Summary Sheet: Phased Retirement, Chantel Sheaks J.D., Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes Phd, Michael A. Smyer Phd

Memos and Fact Sheets

During the first decade of the 21st century, significant attention has been paid to the widely anticipated retirement of the Baby Boom generation from the U.S. workforce. Employers and policymakers have considered important questions such as:

• What percentage of older workers are likely to retire on a full-time basis between the ages of 62-65?

• What might the implications of a “mass exodus” of Baby Boomers mean for different types of businesses?

• Which types of policies and practices might encourage some older workers to extend their labor force participation, thereby enabling employers to retain the knowledge and skills of these experienced …

Faqs About Employees And Employee Benefits, Pamela Perun

Memos and Fact Sheets

This primer is an introduction to the basic laws of employee benefits. It is often assumed that there are legal impediments to employers providing benefits to phased retirees, part-time workers and the contingent workforce. From a benefits law perspective, this is really not true. By statute, self-employed workers are sometimes excluded from plans required to be employee-only but employers face few other prohibitions when designing their plans.

From an employer’s perspective, there are far more impediments to excluding these workers from their benefit plans than including them. Tax law provides incentives to employers who sponsor plans and to workers who …

Flexible Work Arrangements: The Fact Sheet, Jean Flatley Mcguire, Kaitlyn Kenney, Phyllis Brashler

Memos and Fact Sheets

A "flexible work arrangement" (FWA) is any one of a spectrum of work structures that alters the time and/or place that work gets done on a regular basis. The term includes (but is not limited to):

1. flexibility in the scheduling of hours worked, such as alternative work schedules (e.g., flex time and compressed workweeks), and arrangements regarding shift and breack schedules:

2. flexibility in the amount of hours worked, such as part-time work and job shares; and

3. flexibility in the place of work, such as working at home or at a satellite location.

Workplace Flexibility, Work Hours, And Work-Life Conflict: Finding An Extra Day Or Two, E. Jeffrey Hill, Jenet Jacob Erickson, Erin K. Holmes, Maria Ferris

Faculty Publications

This study explores the influence of workplace flexibility on work-life conflict for a global sample of workers from four groups of countries. Data are from the 2007 International Business Machines Global Work and Life Issues Survey administered in 75 countries (N 􏰀24,436). We specifically examine flexibility in where (work-at-home) and when (perceived schedule flexibility) workers engage in work-related tasks. Multivariate results indicate that work-at-home and perceived schedule flexibility are generally related to less work-life conflict. Break point analyses of sub-groups reveal that employees with workplace flexibility are able to work longer hours (often equivalent to one or two 8-hr days …

Flexible Work Arrangements: Improving Job Quality And Workforce Stability For Low-Wage Workers And Their Employers, Jessica Glenn, Liz Watson

Published Reports

In 2009, workers and their families across the country felt the impact of serious economic downturn, with unemployment reaching a 26-year high. While recent news suggests things may be improving, we cannot forget that for many low-wage and hourly workers -- who now represent over a quarter of the U.S. workforce -- the recession only exacerbated their ongoing struggle to hold down quality jobs while caring for their families.

Low-wage workers face many of the same challenges that the rest of us face in reconciling our work, family and personal lives, but for many of these workers, it's simply a …

A Summary Of Data From Families And Work Institute’S National Study Of Employers (2008), Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

This memo presents data from the Families and Work Institute’s 2008 National Study of Employers describing the similarities in access to flexible work arrangements (“FWAs”) for employees of small and large employers. The 2008 National Study of Employers (“2008 Study”) provides a comparison of the availability of 12 types of FWAs to employees of small (50-99 employees) and large (over 1,000 employees) employers.

Flexible Work Arrangements (Fwas): Possible Public Policy Approaches, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

There is a range of ways in which public policy can help workplace flexibility become a norm in the American workplace. Indeed, the various bills introduced in the 110th Congress to increase access to FWAs, one component of workplace flexibility, represent a wide range of public policy approaches.

This document categorizes and characterizes these public policy approaches to help clarify the options that might be pursued to increase access to FWAs.

The Legislative History Of Fefcwa And Feptcea, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Charts and Summaries of State, U.S., and Foreign Laws and Regulations

No abstract provided.

Telework In The Federal Government: The Overview Memo, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

Flexible Work Arrangements (FWAs) alter the time and/or place that employees work on a regular basis in a manner that is manageable and predictable for both employees and employers.1 Telework, also called telecommuting, refers to an FWA that enables an employee to work from an alternative place to the employer’s usual worksite, typically home or a satellite work center. Telework technically refers to work performed with the use of a telecommunications connection to the workplace (e.g., computer, telephone), but the term is also

Statements Illustrating The Legislative Intent Of These Laws, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

Based on statements in the legislative history, these laws were meant to provide:

1. Overarching Benefits in the Current Economy
2. Benefits to Families
3. Benefits to Management
4. Equality for Women
5. Protection of the Environment

An Overview Of Early Laws Increasing Access To Flexible Scheduling And Reduced Hours In The Federal Workforce, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act (FEFCWA) authorizes, but does not require, agencies to offer alternative work schedules to employees. FEFCWA permits employees to designate non-traditional arrival and departure times, centered around core agency hours, and to experiment with four-day workweeks or other compressed schedules. Under the law, implementation and employee utilization of alternative work schedules depends on management support and leadership.

Extended Time Off Overview, Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center

Memos and Fact Sheets

Workplace Flexibility 2010 defines Extended Time Off (EXTO) as time taken off from work for a single reason that extends for more than five days but less than one year.

EXTO may be brief in nature (e.g., a few weeks), when taken, for example, for a vacation, to recover from minor surgery, or to comply with a public health quarantine request. EXTO may also be longer in nature (e.g., a month or more), when taken, for example, for maternity/paternity purposes, for elder care, for military duty, or for a sabbatical from work.

EXTO (either brief or prolonged) may be unpaid …

Fact Sheet On Extended Time Off (Exto), Workplace Flexibility 2010, Georgetown University Law Center, Urban Institute

Memos and Fact Sheets

The Need for Extended Time Off (EXTO):

1. New children: More women and mothers are working, and there is an increase in the number of couples with children in which both parents work.
2. Health issues: According to a 2000 survey of employees regarding the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA), among those who took FMLA leave, more than half, 52.4%, of workers used the leave to attend to their own health conditions. Thirteen percent reported taking leave to care for a parent and nearly 12% reported using leave to care for an ill child.
3. The need for paid EXTO: Despite the …

Lower-Wage Workers And Flexible Work Arrangements, Anna Danziger, Shelley Waters Boots

Memos and Fact Sheets

Workers at all levels within an organization have the need to manage their work and personal/family responsibilities. Much of the past research on workplace flexibility has focused on managerial or professional positions, and thus, higher-wage jobs and workers with higher incomes. But more recently, researchers have begun to investigate the particular challenges of workplace flexibility for workers who do not fit this mold -- specifically, workers who are hourly, receive a lowerwage, or who live in lower-income families. Regardless of how they are defined, workers at the lower end of the wage and income spectrum have some unique workplace flexibility …

Short Term Time Off: What We Know, Anna Danziger, Shelley Waters Boots

Memos and Fact Sheets

Short Term Time Off (STO) refers to job-protected time away from the workplace to address anticipated or unexpected needs of limited duration. STO may be scheduled or unscheduled, depending on the underlying need. STO enables workers to address both the routine and emergency situations that occur in everyday life.

The need for STO may arise, for example, because a worker or worker’s child is sick or has a routine doctor’s appointment, because a worker has to wait for the plumber or apply for public benefits or go to court, or because a worker needs to attend a school conference or …