What does family friendly really mean? Parents, children, job quality & wellbeing

Lyndall Strazdins, Dorothy Broom, Megan Shipley, Emma

George Work, Family and Wellbeing forum, Canberra May 2006

Acknowledgements

NH&MRCAustralian Rotary Health

Research FundGrowing Up in Australia team

Work & Wellbeing

♦ Work delivers benefits to families, especially income & social

integrationBut some conditions may: ♦ hamper ability to both care and

work ♦ affect parents’ health and wellbeing

What is job quality?Jobs with conditions that promote:♦ health and wellbeing♦ combining work with caring

For example♦ Control (over tasks, and work

times), workload, security, work social relationships

Job Quality: Previous research

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Depression Ill Health

%

Optimal work conditions

1 adverse work condition

2 adverse work conditions

Not in the labour force

Unemployed

3 adverse work conditions

Adult health: optimal jobs, poor quality jobs and unemployed. (Broom et al, in press).

Work & Family Wellbeing

JOB QUALITY

PARENT WELL-BEING

CHILD WELL-BEING

A B?

Is job quality associated with working parents’ &

their children’s wellbeing ?

Our Question

Two studies♦ Growing Up in Australia-the Longitudinal

Study of Australian Children (LSAC), cohort study of 0 and 4 year old children and their families (N = 10, 000 families). ♦ Currently employed parents with 4-5 year old children (n mothers = 1910, n fathers = 2343)

♦ Health For Life! NH&MRC funded study ♦ Employed parents and their children,

retail and public service (n 231 families with children 1-16 years)

Strengths & weaknesses

♦ Growing Up in Australia (LSAC) Large, representative sample but weak (single item) measures of work

♦ Health For Life! Detailed data on work conditions, well-developed measures, small sample (retail and public service)

Defining job quality: Growing Up in Australia Access paid personal leave & / or paid maternity, paternity leave (2

items)

Flexibility start & stop times (1 item)

Control over how job is done (1 item)

Perceived job security (1 item)

Score between 0-4 4 = Optimal job (all 4)

Access eg paid personal, maternity or paternity leave, phone, reduced hours,

permanent part-time (10 items)Flexibility start & stop times, holidays (4

items) Control how job is done, decision making (15

items) Perceived job insecurity (5 items)

Work support Supportive relationships (4 items )

Work conflicts Critical, hostile (Reversed 4 items)

Workload Amount, pace, time (Reversed 4 items)

Score between 0 -7 7 = Optimal job (all 7)

Defining job quality+: Health for Life!

All parents

0.40

0.50

0.60

0.70

0.80

0.90

0-1 2 3 4Optimal

Job Quality

DepressionMothers

Fathers

Mothers & fathers depression & job quality

LSAC

Mothers & fathers coping & job quality LSAC

All parents

3.10

3.20

3.30

3.40

3.50

3.60

3.70

3.80

0-1 2 3 4Optimal

Job Quality

Level of copingMothers

Fathers

Parent wellbeing & Job Quality LSAC

adjusted for household income

Mothers Fathers

All

(n=1910)

Part-time

(n=1441)

Full-time

(n=469)

All

(n=2343)

Depression -.113** -.113** -.141** -.146**

Level of coping .078** .057* .158** .129**

* p < .05 ** p < .01

Note: Few part-time fathers (n=144)

Job quality+ and parents’ depression H4L

Job quality+ and parents’ health H4L

Job quality+ and parents’ wellbeing H4L

Depression Self-Rated Health

n 229 229

JOB QUALITY + -.41** .16*

* p < .05 ** p < .001

Adjusted for Household Socio-Economic Status (SES)

LSAC adjusted r depression mothers -.11**, fathers -.15**

Work & Family Wellbeing

JOB QUALITY

PARENT WELL-BEING

CHILD WELL-BEING

A B?

Children’s Wellbeing

Wellbeing Strength & Difficulties Questionnaire (20 items) High scores, more difficulties (Growing up in Australia, 4-5 year old children, H4L 5-16 year old children)Health Child health rated by parent H4L (1item)High scores, better general health.

All parents

7.50

8.00

8.50

9.00

9.50

10.00

0-1 2 3 4Optimal

Job Quality

SDQMothers

Fathers

Child SDQ & Job Quality LSAC

Mothers Fathers

All

(n=1910)

Part-time

(n=1441)

Full-time

(n=469)

All

(n=2343)

Unadjusted -.091** -.107** -.070 -.044*

Adjusted for education -.081** -.100** -.057 -.022

Adjusted for income -.061** -.079** -.040 -.017

* p < .05 ** p < .01

Child Difficulties & Parent Job Quality LSAC

Job quality+ and child difficulties H4L

Job quality+ and child health H4L

Job quality+ and child outcomes H4L

Difficulties Health

n 269 267

JQI plus+

-.17† .02

†p < .10

Adjusted for household SES & clustering

LSAC adjusted r SDQ mothers -.08**, fathers -.02

Limitations

♦ Cross-sectional data♦ Pay, training & development

Job Quality is Family Friendliness

High quality jobs:♦ Are more than family friendly

conditions.♦ May reduce ill health and

mental disorder in parents, & so♦ May also support participation

& productivity.

Job Quality is Family Friendliness

Two unique data sets - child as well as parent wellbeing…

Jobs which optimise parents’ wellbeing may also help optimise children’s

Work & Family Health

JOB QUALITY

PARENT WELL-BEING

CHILD WELL-BEING

A B

Appendices

Who has Quality Jobs ? LSAC Mothers Fathers

Job Quality

score

All

(n=1910)

%

Part-time

(n=1441)

%

Full-time

(n=469)

%

All

(n=2343)

%

Part-time

(n=144)

%

Full-time

(n=2199)

%

0-1 Poor 7.4 8.1 5.3 5.2 11.1 4.8

2 21.7 22.8 18.1 16.6 29.9 15.8

3 47.0 46.9 38.2 43.7 47.9 43.4

4 Optimal 23.9 19.2 38.4 34.5 11.1 36.0

Who has quality jobs+ ? H4L

Job Quality Plus + Retail %

Public Service

%

All%

n 116 114 231

3 Poor 1.7 1.8 1.7

4 4.3 4.4 4.3

5 12.9 6.1 9.6

6 21.6 19.3 20.4

7 Optimal

59.5 68.4 63.9

Mothers Fathers

All

(n=1910)

Part-time

(n=1441)

Full-time

(n=469)

All

(n=2343)

Part-time

(n=144)

Full-time

(n=2199)

Depression -.120** -.133** -.101* -.047* -.047 -.048*

Level of coping .044 .031 .110* .058** -.025 .064**

Difficulty of life -.092** -.119** -.040 -.006 .003 -.008

* p < .05 ** p < .01

Parent well-being & household income LSAC