Family-friendly policies refer to the ability to balance family responsibilities, such as raising children or caring for dependent relatives, with professional career goals. Since work and family often exert competing demands, fulfilling one typically comes at the expense of the other. According to Spector et al. (2004), this conflict leads to higher stress levels, strain (as explained in the stress-strain model), and performance issues in both professional and family spheres.
These policies target not only female employees but also men, whose life plans increasingly include family, and who also demand flexible and family-friendly work conditions. As a result, family-oriented personnel policies are not solely focused on advancing women.
The need for family-friendly policies is particularly urgent in Germany, which has one of the lowest birth rates in Europe and the highest proportion of childless individuals globally. This demographic situation poses long-term challenges due to the lack of skilled workers and the decrease in new business ventures and innovations, as noted in technological change discussions.
A family-friendly human resources policy aims to fulfill two seemingly conflicting goals, creating a win-win situation for both the organization and its members. These goals are:
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Social Efficiency: Meeting the expectations, needs, and interests of employees regarding work-family balance. Family orientation also responds to growing social and political pressures to legitimize economic activity.
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Economic/Business Efficiency: Implementing family-friendly measures that enhance business efficiency. The economic benefits include retaining qualified employees, reducing turnover, and increasing employee loyalty. According to a study by Grover and Crooker (1995), family-friendly policies contribute to long-term retention of skilled workers. The Prognos study (2004) also shows that return rates after parental leave are significantly higher in companies with family-oriented policies, with employees also taking shorter parental leaves on average.
