Open Access Peer-reviewed Research Article

Construction workers work-life balance: A tool for improving productivity in the construction industry

Article Sidebar

Reliability statistics
Download PDF
Submitted   Jun 2, 2020
Published   Jun 18, 2020
Issue    Vol 2 No 1 (2020)
DOI   10.25082/SWSW.2020.01.001

Views

4998

Downloads

2802

Citations

PlumX Metrics

Main Article Content

K Apraku
Department of Building Technology, Kumasi Technical University, Ghana
FK Bondinuba corresponding author
Department of Building Technology, Kumasi Technical University, Ghana
AK Eyiah
Department of Built Environment, Pentecost University College, Accra, Ghana
AM Sadique
Department of Building Technology, Tamale Technical University, Tamale, Ghana

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between construction workers work-life balance and productivity in the construction industry in Ghana. Survey method was adopted where 200 Questionnaires were administered to small and medium construction firms and 150 response were obtained. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) was also carried out to establish the relationship between the predictor (WLB) and criterion latent variable set (Productivity). It emerged that there is a relationship between construction workers work life balance and productivity in the construction industry. This work strives to engender a wider academic debate and renewed the need for work life balance policies that will enhance productivity to be revisited. Management of construction organisations must develop and implement construction workers work-life balance polices at their place of work.

Keywords
construction workers, construction industry, Ghana, productivity, work-life balance

Article Details

How to Cite
Apraku, K., Bondinuba, F., Eyiah, A., & Sadique, A. (2020). Construction workers work-life balance: A tool for improving productivity in the construction industry. Social Work and Social Welfare, 2(1), 45-52. https://doi.org/10.25082/SWSW.2020.01.001
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

References

  1. Meenakshisundaram M and Panchanatham N. A Study of Work Life Balance of Employees with Reference to a Garment Industry-Unit. AMET International Journal of Management, 2012, 3(1): 52-58.
  2. Kvande E. Work-Life Balance for Fathers in Globalized Knowledge Work. Some Insights from the Norwegian Context. Gender, Work and Organization, 2009, 16(1): 58-72. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2008.00430.x
  3. Amstad FT, Meier LL, Fasel U, et al. A Meta-analysis of Work-family Conflict and various Outcomes with a special Emphasis on Cross Domain Versus Matching-domain Re-lations. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 2011, 16(2): 151. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022170
  4. Townsend K, Lingard H, Bradley L, et al. Complicated Working Time Arrangements: Construction Industry Case Study. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 2012, 138(3): 443-448. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000436
  5. Greenhaus JH, Collins KM and Shaw JD. The Relation Between Work-family Balance and Quality of Life. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 2003, 63(3): 510-531 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0001-8791(02)00042-8
  6. Accel-Team. Employee Motivation, Motivation in theWorkplace. Theory and Business Studies, 2005, 11: 1-6.
  7. Muura A, KorianMand Krajnovi S.Work-life and life-work conflicting Croatian companies: Some perspectives. International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior, 2013, 16(1): 42-67. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOTB-16-01-2013-B003
  8. Gregory A and Milner S. Work-life Balance: A Matter of Choice? Gender, Work and Organization, 2009, 16(1): 1- 13. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2008.00429.x
  9. Seppala E and King M. Burnout at Work Isn’t Just About Exhaustion. It’s also about Loneliness. Harvard Business Review, 2017.
  10. Bird J. Work-life Balance Defined-what it Really Means. Retrieved October, 2003, 18: 2007.
  11. Lingard H and Sublet A. The Impact of Job and Organizational Demands on Marital or Relationship Satisfaction and Conflict Among Australian Civil Engineers. Construction Management and Economics, 2002, 20(6): 507-521. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446190210156073
  12. Mordi C, Mmieh F and Ojo SI. An Exploratory Study of Managers’ Perspective of WorkLife Balance in Nigeria: A Case Analysis of the Nigerian Banking Sector. Thunderbird International Business Review, 2013, 55(1): 55-75. https://doi.org/10.1002/tie.21523
  13. Asiedu-Appiah F, ID-M. Work-life Balance as a Tool for Stress Management in selected Organization in Institutions in Ghana, Global Advanced Research Journal of Management and Business Studies, 2013, 1: 21.
  14. Cegarra-Leiva D, Snchez-Vidal ME and Gabriel Cegarra- Navarro J. Understanding the Link Between Work Life Balance Practices and Organisational Outcomes in SMEs: The Mediating Effect of a Supportive Culture. Personnel Review, 2012, 41(3): 359-379. https://doi.org/10.1108/00483481211212986
  15. Connell RW and Messerschmidt JW. Hegemonic Masculinity: Rethinking the Concept. Gender and Society, 2005, 19(6): 829-859. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243205278639
  16. Tammelin M.Working Time and Family Time: Experiences of the Work and Family Interface Among Dual-Earning Couples in Finland (No. 355). University of Jyvskyl, 2009.
  17. McCann D. Regulating working time needs and preferences. InWorking Time andWorkers’ Preferences in Industrialized Countries, 2004: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203342473_chapter_1
  18. Guest DE. Perspectives on the study of work-life balance. Social Science Information, 2002, 41(2): 255-279. https://doi.org/10.1177/0539018402041002005
  19. Parent-Thirion A. Fourth European working conditions survey. Luxembourg: Office for official Publ. of the European Communities. 2007.
  20. Warren T. Working Parttime: Achieving a Successful Worklife Balance? The British Journal of Sociology, 2004, 55(1): 99-122. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-4446.2004.00008.x
  21. Hayman JR. Flexible work arrangements: Exploring the Linkages between Perceived Usability of Flexible Work Schedules and Work Life Balance. Community, Work & Family, 2009, 12(3): 327-338. https://doi.org/10.1080/13668800902966331
  22. Watts JH.’Allowed into a Man’s World’ Meanings of Worklife Balance: Perspectives ofWomen Civil Engineers as ’Minority’ Workers in Construction. Gender, Work and Organization, 2009, 16(1): 37-57. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2007.00352.x
  23. Yang N. Individualism-collectivism and Work-family Interfaces: A Sino-US Comparison. Work and Family: An International Research Perspective, 2005, 3: 287-318.
  24. Voydanoff P and Donnelly BW.Work and Family Roles and Psychological Distress. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 1989: 923-932. https://doi.org/10.2307/353205
  25. Darcy C, McCarthy A, Hill J, et al. Work-life Balance: One size Fits All? An Exploratory Analysis of the Differential Effects of Career Stage. European Management Journal, 2012, 30(2): 111-120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2011.11.001
  26. Burke R. ’Do Managerial Men Benefit from Organizational Values supportingWork. Business Administration Research, 2000, 1(2). https://doi.org/10.1108/09649420010319606
  27. Shehata ME and El-Gohary KM. Towards Improving Construction Labor Productivity and Projects’ Performance. Alexandria Engineering Journal, 2011, 50(4): 321-330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aej.2012.02.001
  28. Herbsman Z and Ellis R. Research of Factors Influencing Construction Productivity. Construction Management and Economics, 1990, 8(1): 49-61. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446199000000005
  29. Dozzi SP and AbouRizk SM. Productivity in Construction (p. 44). Ottawa: Institute for Research in Construction, National Research Council. Employee Survey, Employment Relations Research Series, London, No. 27, 1993.
  30. Orando M. The Influence of Human Behaviour Factors on Construction Productivity (Doctoral Dissertation, University of the Free State), 2013.
  31. Kotey B and Sharma B. Predictors of Flexible Working Arrangement Provision in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2016, 27(22): 2753-2770. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2015.1102160
  32. Christopher K. Paid Leaves as Buffer Zones: Policy Contexts and Work-Life Balance among Canadian Mothers. Journal of Research on Women and Gender, 2015: 6.
  33. Susi S and Jawaharrani K. Work-Life Balance: The Key Driver of Employee Engagement. Asian Journal of Management Research, 2011, 2(1): 474-483.
  34. Hair JF. Multivariate Data Analysis, 7. Black, WC, Babin, BJ, and Anderson, 2010.
  35. Graham JR and Harvey CR. The Theory and Practice of Corporate Finance: Evidence from The Field. Journal of Financial Economics, 2001, 60(2-3): 187-243 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-405X(01)00044-7
  36. Taber KS. The Use of Cronbach’s Alpha when Developing and Reporting Research Instruments in Science Education. Research in Science Education, 2018, 48(6): 1273-1296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-016-9602-2
  37. Sherry A and Henson RK. Conducting and Interpreting Canonical Correlation Analysis in Personality Research: A User-Friendly Primer. Journal of Personality Assessment, 2005, 84(1): 37-48. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa840109
  38. White M, Hill S, McGovern P, et al. High Performance Management Practices, Working Hours and Work-life Balance. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 2003, 41(2): 175- 195. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8543.00268
  39. Ueda Y. The Relationship Between Work-life Balance Programs and Employee Satisfaction: Gender Differences in the Moderating Effect of Annual Income. Journal of Business Administration Research, 2012, 1(1): 65. https://doi.org/10.5430/jbar.v1n1p65
  40. Lehnert T, Stuhldreher N, Streltchenia P, et al. Sick Leave Days and Costs Associated with Overweight and Obesity in Germany. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2014, 56(1): 20-27. https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0000000000000065