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Working Time and Work and Family Conflict in the Netherlands, Sweden and the Uk

Author

Listed:
  • Christine R. Cousins

    (University of Hertfordshire, UKc.r.cousins@herts.ac.uk)

  • Ning Tang

    (Sheffield Hallam University, UKn.tang@shu.ac.uk)

Abstract

This article presents evidence on working time flexibility and the experience of work and family conflict in the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK, using data from a comparable questionnaire. We find that the experience of balancing work and family life in the different countries yields some surprising and paradoxical results. This is particularly the case in Sweden where, despite the establishment of gender equality and work–family reconciliation policies, we find that higher proportions of both mothers and fathers than in the other two countries report a conflict between their work and family lives. In the Netherlands and the UK it is fathers rather than mothers who are more likely to report conflicting pressures between work and family life. In each country these experiences are related to the hours of work of women and men, but in the context of different working-time regimes and with different compromises and solutions to the unresolved tensions surrounding the conciliation of work and family life.

Suggested Citation

  • Christine R. Cousins & Ning Tang, 2004. "Working Time and Work and Family Conflict in the Netherlands, Sweden and the Uk," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 18(3), pages 531-549, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:18:y:2004:i:3:p:531-549
    DOI: 10.1177/0950017004045549
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. John M. Evans & Douglas C. Lippoldt & Pascal Marianna, 2001. "Trends in Working Hours in OECD Countries," OECD Labour Market and Social Policy Occasional Papers 45, OECD Publishing.
    3. Eileen Appelbaum & Thomas Bailey & Peter Berg, 2002. "Shared work/valued care: new norms for organizing market work and unpaid care work," Chapters, in: Hugh Mosley & Jacqueline O’Reilly (ed.), Labour Markets, Gender and Institutional Change, chapter 7, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    4. Gallie, Duncan & White, Michael & Cheng, Yuan & Tomlinson, Mark, 1998. "Restructuring the Employment Relationship," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198294412.
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    Cited by:

    1. Emma Hagqvist & Susanna Toivanen & Claudia Bernhard-Oettel, 2018. "Balancing Work and Life When Self-Employed: The Role of Business Characteristics, Time Demands, and Gender Contexts," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(8), pages 1-20, August.
    2. Daniele Vignli & Letizia Mencarini & Giammarco Alderotti, 2018. "Is the Impact of Employment Uncertainty on Fertility Intentions Channeled by Subjective Well-Being?," Working Papers 114, "Carlo F. Dondena" Centre for Research on Social Dynamics (DONDENA), Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi.
    3. Cathrine Seierstad & Gill Kirton, 2015. "Having It All? Women in High Commitment Careers and Work–Life Balance in Norway," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(4), pages 390-404, July.
    4. Sergi Vidal & Philipp M. Lersch, 2019. "Changes in gender role attitudes following couples' residential relocations," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 40(39), pages 1111-1152.
    5. Bryson, Lois & Warner-Smith, Penny & Brown, Peter & Fray, Leanne, 2007. "Managing the work-life roller-coaster: Private stress or public health issue?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 65(6), pages 1142-1153, September.

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    Keywords

    Europe; family; flexibility; gender; time; work;
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