Work and family balance in regional Victoria - a pilot project

Balancing work and family responsibilities is an increasingly significant concern not only for individual employees, their families and the broader community, but also for government and local communities. However little attention has been paid to the different ways in which constraints and opportunities for work and family balance operate across industry in regional and rural Australia or how these differences might affect employee work and family balance outcomes. Nor has there been any detailed analysis of the ways in which local infrastructure, such as the operating hours of local services including kindergartens, public transport and local government services, might support or frustrate better work and family balance. A regional focus is important because work and family balance for individual workers and or working families is dependent on many background economic and social forces outside the family or household. These include: > The structure of job opportunities in a particular area, such as the strength of labour demand and the configuration of dominant industries and skill requirements; > The availability of public and private infrastructure such as transport, education and training, childcare and aged care; and > Specific employment benefits and workplace conditions that the worker experiences in his or her job, eg the number of hours, schedules, wages, leave provisions, and the nature of supervision. The recent implementation of the Federal Government’s wide ranging policy and legislative changes in industrial relations and its welfare to work reforms are expected to further intensify the challenges faced by working families in balancing work and family. Much depends on the response of employers. It remains uncertain the extent to which, and how quickly, WorkChoices will influence employers’ decisions with respect to wages and conditions. ‘Work and Family Balance in Regional Victoria: a Pilot Project’ is an exploratory study and focuses on four Victorian regional areas – Bendigo, Colac, Horsham and Latrobe City. In each of these areas, the Project aims were to identify: > Major industry and employment characteristics as well as regional socio-demographic characteristics that might impact on work and family balance; > Key infrastructure and local services that might support better work and family balance for local families; > Key local work and family issues in relation to the challenges facing workers and those wanting to undertake paid work, families and employers in combining work and family responsibilities. The Project draws on an analysis of available statistical data to identify major regional socio-demographic, industry and employment characteristics that might impact on work and family balance. It also draws on consultation with key stakeholders and employee focus groups together with input from regional forums held to provide feedback on the Project findings and possible local options to better support work family balance for working families in each of the areas