個案資料

The net result of changes in the work-family politics is that there is, at one level, a merging of work-family pressures for women and men. As women and men move in opposite directions - women increasingly into the workplace, and men increasingly into the activities of the home - both are beginning to embrace greater responsibility in areas where prior generations practiced clear gender segregation. However, in spite of the growing popular rhetoric that families are egalitarian and parents are interchangeable when they do their carework, an imbalance still exists between the primary responsibilities that attributed to women and men. Men and work-family conflict is an emerging workplace issue. This article discusses the importance of father involvement and the positive impact such involvement has on both the parent and the children. Leaders in the area have to plan, manage and develop opportunities for supporting fathers and men as carers. As families are stretched to capacity even with fathers' participation, it is reasonable to assume that demands for change will now shift more strongly for workplace change. The authors call for a more comprehensive discussion that includes men in work-family issues, as well as a more complex discussion that recognizes the role they are already quietly assuming. The article also provides suggestions for what the workplace should do for fathers. Managers should ask dads what would be helpful for them, develop Father programs/groups at lunch and learns, ensure that parental leave is also advertised and planned for fathers within the workplace, communicate a general commitment/attitude shift so that fathers feel they can take advantage of what is already offered, incorporate community relations by including some focus on father/child events organized by a male champion, reduce employee stress by giving extra time off or assisting fathers and their families that work for them and reviewing and adapting policies to reflect a wide variety of family formations

• Organizational Behaviour