Flexible Work Arrangements from Generation and Gender Perspectives: Evidence from Lithuania

Abstract

The demand for employee-oriented and individualized work arrangements and practices those permit temporal and spatial flexibility in work processes and help to fit changing personal needs and environmental conditions is constantly increasing. A growing number of private companies and public organizations are adopting flexible work arrangements to help employees balance their work–family demands and companies cope with variations in demand, reduce expenses, and be more attractive for employees. Employees representing different age and sex groups have different expectations and priorities towards work, and, likely, they evaluate and respond to flexible work practices also differently. The paper investigates how different genders and generations evaluate and respond to flexibility at work. Empirical research was conducted in Lithuania. Data were collected from a sample of 316 employees (195 women and 121 men). Research revealed a high expression of flexible work arrangements in Lithuanian organizations. Flexible work schedule and flexible work load are dominating in the organizations. Representatives of generations B and Y are most satisfied in the forms of flexible work arrangements applied in their organizations. Hypothesis that women tend to work flexibly more than men was proved partially during the research. Hypothesis that work flexibility in aspect of time and load is more attractive to respondents than flexibility in aspect of working place was totally proved.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ee.29.1.19247