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Trade Unions and Work‐life Balance: Changing Times in France and the UK?

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  • Abigail Gregory
  • Susan Milner

Abstract

The mixed empirical findings to date have indicated that some, but not all, unions in industrialized countries are actively involved in campaigning and bargaining around work–life balance (WLB) issues, as part of a modernization agenda linked to feminization and to ‘positive flexibility’. This article seeks to identify factors that might encourage or inhibit trade unions from involvement in WLB issues, within a cross‐national comparative perspective focusing on two countries (France and the UK) that have contrasting working time regimes and approaches to WLB. It draws on original research carried out in two sectors — insurance and social work — in these two countries. The article links the emergence of union WLB programmes and bargaining agendas to gender‐equality concerns within the union and to the gender composition of the sector, as well as to the working time regime, including the mode of action, partnership being a significant corollary of WLB campaigning in the UK. We find support for the modernization thesis in the UK, particularly in the public sector, but within severe constraints defined by employer initiative.

Suggested Citation

  • Abigail Gregory & Susan Milner, 2009. "Trade Unions and Work‐life Balance: Changing Times in France and the UK?," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 47(1), pages 122-146, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:47:y:2009:i:1:p:122-146
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8543.2008.00710.x
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    1. John W. Budd & Karen Mumford, 2004. "Trade Unions and Family-Friendly Policies in Britain," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 57(2), pages 204-222, January.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Pierre-Jean Messe & Jeremy Tanguy, 2022. "Does gender equality bargaining reduce child penalty? Evidence from France," Working Papers hal-03780958, HAL.
    3. Surhan Cam, 2014. "The Underemployed: Evidence From the UK Labour Force Survey for a Conditionally Gendered Top-down Model," Journal of Social Science Studies, Macrothink Institute, vol. 1(2), pages 47-65, July.
    4. Janet Sayers & Jane Parker & Julie Douglas & Katherine Ravenswood & Rae Cooper, 2015. "Introduction to Special Collection: Women’s agency at work," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 26(3), pages 384-392, September.
    5. Anne‐Sophie Bruno & Nathalie Greenan & Jeremy Tanguy, 2021. "Does the Gender Mix Influence Collective Bargaining on Gender Equality? Evidence from France," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(4), pages 479-520, October.
    6. Sangheon Lee & Deirdre McCann, 2011. "Negotiating Working Time in Fragmented Labour Markets: Realizing the Promise of ‘Regulated Flexibility’," Chapters, in: Susan Hayter (ed.), The Role of Collective Bargaining in the Global Economy, chapter 3, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    7. Veronika Lemeire & Patrizia Zanoni, 2022. "Beyond methodological nationalism in explanations of gender equality: The impact of EU policies on gender provisions in national collective agreements in Belgium (1957–2020)," European Journal of Industrial Relations, , vol. 28(1), pages 47-64, March.
    8. Mike Rigby & Fiona O'Brien-Smith, 2010. "Trade union interventions in work-life balance," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 24(2), pages 203-220, June.
    9. Berg, Peter & Kossek, Ellen Ernst & Baird, Marian & Block, Richard N., 2013. "Collective bargaining and public policy: Pathways to work-family policy adoption in Australia and the United States," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 495-504.
    10. Artz, Benjamin & Heywood, John S., 2020. "Unions, Worker Participation and Worker Well-Being," GLO Discussion Paper Series 705, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    11. Ryan Lorraine & Wallace Joseph, 2019. "Mutual Gains Success and Failure: Two Case Studies of Annual Hours in Ireland," The Irish Journal of Management, Sciendo, vol. 38(1), pages 26-37, December.
    12. Josefina Erikson, 2021. "A special fund for gender equality? Institutional constraints and gendered consequences in Swedish collective bargaining," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 1379-1397, July.
    13. Leigh Clark & Sherry Roberts, 2010. "Employer’s Use of Social Networking Sites: A Socially Irresponsible Practice," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(4), pages 507-525, September.
    14. Sue Williamson, 2015. "A case study of regulatory confusion: Paid parental leave and public servants," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 26(3), pages 430-447, September.

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