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| Work-family Enrollment Without Career Harm |
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| Nation - Workplace | |||
| TS-Si News Service | |||
| Wednesday, 04 May 2011 03:00 | |||
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University Park, PA, USA. Employees often suspect that participating in work-family programs could harm their careers, and prior research studies have shown they are right to be worried. Employees who use the programs are at risk of fewer promotions and lower wages than those who do not.
But now, two researchers have shown how employees could gain the intended benefits of work-family programs — such as flexible schedules with prorated pay — without harming their careers. Forrest Briscoe, assistant professor of management, Penn State Smeal College of Business, and Katherine Kellogg, associate professor of organization studies, MIT, studied the personnel records of nearly 1000 associates employed by a large law firm. They found that employees who were assigned to powerful supervisors upon entry into the firm had a better experience when, usually much later, they participated in a work-family program, something they called the initial assignment effect. Looking Ahead It is important for employees to create a respected reputation as soon as possible upon entering a new workplace. Those who suspect they are going to use work-family programs in the future should be proactive about taking on large-scale projects and exposing their talents to others within the organization. It is particularly important to do this before people start questioning their commitment."By the time they enrolled in the reduced-hours program, employees who had been initially assigned to powerful supervisors had gained access to a greater range of reputation-building work opportunities than other employees," said the researchers, who noted that the average time span between entering the firm and participating in the program is four years. Program users who experienced the initial assignment effect were more likely to receive positive performance evaluations and fared better in their careers than those who did not. Employees not subject to the initial assignment effect should think twice before enrolling in a reduced-hours program. Simply by using the program, they become part of a traditionally disadvantaged group — mothers and male primary caregivers — which may invite supervisors to question their commitment, abilities and marketability. "Given their ability to award wages and promotions, supervisors who feel this way about their employees have the power to damage their employees' careers," said the researchers, whose study appears in the American Sociological Review. In the organization sampled in the study, initial assignment was a random process, but the researchers suggest that organizations may do well to consider the initial assignment process proactively. Companies can use this as a lever in the strategic management of human capital, as well as the retention and promotion of women and mothers. Briscoe and Kellogg also expect to find similar results in investment banks, consulting firms and accounting firms, but not necessarily in traditional manufacturing firms where employees work with fewer supervisors. Plus, supervisors in manufacturing firms are typically not involved in later evaluation of their previous employees. Workers who participate in employee-rights programs, like sexual harassment or dispute resolution programs, often experience the same vulnerabilities as those who take part in work-family programs. "Our findings suggest that initial assignment to a powerful supervisor would likely promote positive career outcomes for users of these kinds of employee-rights programs," the researchers wrote. If true, this would suggest the importance of solidifying one's professional reputation prior to participation in those programs as well, though depending on the program that may not always be feasible. CitationThe Initial Assignment Effect: Local Employer Practices and Positive Career Outcomes for Work-Family Program Users. Forrest Briscoe and Katherine C. Kellogg. American Sociological Review 2011; 76(2): 291-319. doi:10.1177/0003122411401250
Abstract One of the great paradoxes of inequality in organizations is that even when organizations introduce new programs designed to help employees in traditionally disadvantaged groups succeed, employees who use these programs often suffer negative career consequences. This study helps to fill a significant gap in the literature by investigating how local employer practices can enable employees to successfully use the programs designed to benefit them. Using a research approach that controls for regulatory environment and program design, we analyze unique longitudinal personnel data from a large law firm to demonstrate that assignment to powerful supervisors upon organization entry improves career outcomes for individuals who later use a reduced-hours program. Additionally, we find that initial assignment to powerful supervisors is more important to positive career outcomes — that is, employee retention and performance-based pay — than are factors such as supervisor assignment at the time of program use. Initial assignment affects career outcomes for later program users through the mechanism of improved access to reputation-building work opportunities. These findings have implications for research on work-family programs and other employee-rights programs and for the role of social capital in careers. Keywords: organizations, equal opportunity, social capital, law, work-family, work hours.
 The TS-Si News Service is a collaborative effort by TS-Si.org editors, contributors, and corresponding institutions. The sources can include the cited individuals and organizations, as well as TS-Si.org staff contributions. Articles and news reports do not necessarily convey official positions of TS-Si, its partners, or affiliates.We welcome your comments. Use the form below to leave a public comment or send private correspondence via the TS-Si Contact Page. We will not divulge any personal details or place you on a mailing list without your permission. TS-Si is dedicated to the acceptance, medical treatment, and legal protection of individuals correcting the misalignment of their brains and their anatomical sex, while supporting their transition into society as hormonally reconstituted and surgically corrected citizens. To create link towards this article on your website, copy and paste the text below in your page. Preview :
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| Last Updated on Tuesday, 03 May 2011 22:04 |
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