Career Management

Working Couples
Working Couples
 Dual-career couples refers to the situation where both partners are career
orientated and committed to a career, while at the same time, maintaining a
family life together.
 Dual-earner couple differ from the dual-career couple in the sense that both
spouses are involved in the paid labour force, where one may be pursuing a
career, while the other views his or her occupational involvement as a job,
or where both spouses consider themselves to hold jobs.
 Dual career couple: As soon as they have completed
studies, need to update skills, both are career orientated
and both help family. May have problems with work life
balance.
 Dual earner couple: One is career orientated and other
sees job as just a job (get paid). May have financial
problems. May have work life balance problems. Will
work extra shifts.
 Job vs Career: Job= just a work to get paid. Career= LTM,
need to update skills and focussed.
• What if client has HIV?
• Must help person. Accept them and not judge.
Need to refer them to clinic asap to get
medicine
 Factors that influence how partners combine occupational and family roles

Factor Examples
Personality
Personality
PERSONAL
PERSONAL FACTORS
FACTORS How
How important
important isis aa partner’s
partner’s need
need to
to dominate,
dominate, toto be
be emotionally
emotionally intimate,
intimate, to
to be
be tops
tops in
in his
his or
or her
her field?
field?
Attitudes
Attitudes andand Values
Values
What
What are
are aa partner’s
partner’s views
views about
about rearing
rearing aa child,
child, about
about women
women being
being successful
successful as as men
men professionally?
professionally?
Interests and Abilities
Interests and Abilities
How
How committed
committed is is aa partner
partner to
to occupational
occupational work,
work, to
to family
family relations?
relations?Are
Are both
both partners
partners satisfied
satisfied with
with
their
their occupations
occupations and and career
career plans?
plans?
Stages
Stages inin careers
careers
Is
Is one
one partner
partner peaking
peaking andand the
the other
other thinking
thinking about
about retirement?
retirement?

Equity
Equity and and power
power
RELATIONSHIP
RELATIONSHIP How
How are decisions
are decisions made?
made? What
What seems
seems fair?
fair? How
How dodo partners
partners come
come to
to agreements
agreements about
about household
household
FACTORS work,
work, parenting
parenting and
and money?
money?
FACTORS
Partner
Partner support
support
Can
Can partners
partners count
count on
on each
each other
other for
for support
support in
in most
most areas?
areas?
Shared
Shared Values
Values
Do
Do partners
partners share
share the
the same
same views
views ofof women’s
women’s an an men’s
men’s expectations
expectations and
and roles?
roles? Do
Do partners
partners have
have
similar life goals?
similar life goals?

Work
Work Situation
Situation
ENVIRONMENTAL
ENVIRONMENTAL Are
Are work
work hours
hours flexible?
flexible? Is
Is there
there evidence
evidence of of sex
sex discrimination
discrimination oror other
other kinds
kinds of
of gender
gender bias?
bias?Are
Are
AND policies
policies prohibiting
prohibiting sexual
sexual harassment
harassment in in place
place and
and understood?
AND SOCIETAL
SOCIETAL understood?
FACTORS Employers
Employers ViewsViews
FACTORS
Are
Are policies
policies family
family oriented?
oriented? What
What is
is the
the general
general attitude
attitude toward
toward employees
employees who who involve
involve themselves
themselves in
in
family
family life?
life?
Availability
Availability andand Quality
Quality of of child-care
child-care
Is
Is child-care available? Does itit meet
child-care available? Does meet parents’
parents’ criteria
criteria for
for high-quality
high-quality care?
care?
Support
Support Systems
Systems
Do
Do family
family members
members livelive nearby?
nearby?Are Are friends
friends and
and colleagues
colleagues also
also in
in dual-wage
dual-wage families?
families? Is
Is the
the
community responsive to the needs of employed
community responsive to the needs of employed parents? parents?

Source: Gilbert, LA (1994) ‘Current perspectives on dual career families’. Current Directions of Psychological Science, 3 (4), 102. Cambridge University Press.
 Work-Family Role Pressure Compatability

WORK
WORK DOMAIN ROLE
ROLE PRESSURE
PRESSURE FAMILY
DOMAIN FAMILY DOMAIN
DOMAIN
INCOMPATIBILITY
INCOMPATIBILITY
Illustrative
IllustrativePressures
Pressures Time
Time devoted
devoted to to one
one role
role Illustrative
Illustrative Pressure
Pressure
makes
makes itit difficult
difficult to
to fulfill
fulfill
Young
Young children
children
Hours
Hoursworked
worked Time requirements
requirements of
of another
another Time
Inflexible
InflexibleWork
Work Spouse
Spouse
role.
role.
Schedule
Schedule
employment
employment
Shift
Shiftwork
work Strain
Strain produced
produced by
by one
one role
role
Large
Large families
families
makes
makes itit difficult
difficult to
to fulfill
fulfill
Role
RoleConflict
Conflict Strain Strain Family
Family Conflict
Conflict
Role
requirements
requirements of
of another
another
RoleAmbiguity Low
Ambiguity
Low spouse
spouse support
support
Boundary-spanning
Boundary-spanning role.
role.
Activities
Activities
Behaviour
Behaviour required
required in
in one
one Expectations
Expectations for
for
Expectations
Expectationsfor
for
Behaviour role
role makes
makes itit difficult
difficult to
to Behaviour Warmth
Warmth and
and
Secretiveness
Secretivenessand
and fulfill
fulfill requirements
requirements of
of Openness
Openness
Objectivity
Objectivity
another
another role.
role.

Negative
Negative Sanctions
Sanctions for
for Noncompliance
Noncompliance

Role
Role Salience
Salience
NJ Beutell, “Sources of Conflict between Work and Family Roles”, Academy of Management Review
Consequences of work-home interference

Consequences of work-home interference Description

Psychological consequences Work – related stress, burnout, psychological

strain

Physical consequences Somatic and physical symptoms such as

headache, backache, upset stomach, and fatigue
as well as sleep deprivation

Job satisfaction, organisational commitment,

Attitudinal consequences marital satisfaction

Increased consumption of stimulants like coffee,

Behavioural consequences cigarettes, and alcohol

Reduced job and life satisfaction, low

organisational commitment and intention to
Organisational consequences quit, stress and burnout, low levels of job
performance, and the prevalence of accidents.
Requirements for working couples to
balance career and family.
 More frequent open and honest discussions
 Setting priorities
 Examining and discussing the different roles
 Communicating values(what is most important for each
one)
 Managing daily life by redefining the different roles in
such a way that both partners are capable of doing what
needs to be done, and
 Taking responsibility for managing one’s own stress
Organisational actions
 Show more organisational sensitivity for home life
 Training workshops on how to manage the work-home interface
 Include spouses in career discussions
 Flexible benefits, such as child-care facilities
 Be sensitive to needs of women as they experience more constraints
than men and must make more trade-offs
 Do not create environment where people are forced to choose
between career advancement and devotion to family
 Introduce flexible working hours
 Revise relocation policies
 Implement family-friendly benefits
 Demonstrate the value of investing in a family-friendly organisation
Continue: Organisational actions
 Extend company benefits to assist parents
 Develop female managerial skills through training and lateral moves when
upward mobility is impossible because of home commitments
 Provide company resources for family recreational and educational use
 Introduce family days
 Introduce alternative career paths
 Provide greater flexibility by creating more permanent part-time jobs
 Provide information concerning work and family policies and job demands
 Introduce a newsletter
 Establish support networks
 Value employees as whole people
 Invest in employees ‘ extramural activities
 Conduct a dual-career audit.