Two-Career Couples Just Want Some Workplace Flexibility, Study Shows

As two-career couples take over the workplace--and there’s no doubt that they’ve booted out the traditional wife-at-home family--the thing they want most from employers is not child-care centers or telecommuting options.

Their big wish wouldn’t cost very much and could be provided by even the smallest of companies.

What dual-career duos crave most is simple flexibility, according to a study by Catalyst, a New York nonprofit research and consulting firm. These couples say their greatest need is an informal freedom to arrive late, leave early or work at home when family needs make it necessary.

But as easy as that sounds, it could require an overhaul of corporate culture, something notoriously difficult to pull off.

Working couples “are telling companies loud and clear that simply adding benefits or isolated programs is not enough,” says the report, titled “Two Careers, One Marriage: Making It Work in the Workplace.”

“They are looking for work environments which are flexible and allow them the control they need to tailor their own schedules and career futures. A culture that supports those requirements can only be created from the top,” it says.

Traditional families in which the dad works and the mom stays at home with one or more children represent only about 17% of working families, compared with about 63% in 1950, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures. Dual-worker couples head up 43% of families in the work force, up from about 20% in 1950.

The Catalyst study was based on a survey of nearly 1,000 men and women, many of them managers, who are part of dual-earner couples. Follow-up interviews with 25 couples were conducted.

*

About 85% of survey respondents wanted an informal policy allowing flexible hours, and 63% said they could go for a more formal flexible work program.

Of course, these couples are looking for a lot more from employers than a chance to leave early to lug the kids to the orthodontist.

Respondents also hankered for cafeteria-style benefits (79%), family leave (74%), home office telecommuting (65%), company-supported child care (53%), relocation assistance for spouses (46%) and elder-care support (38%).

Almost two-thirds of men and three-quarters of women want the option of customizing their career paths, perhaps slowing down the pace of advancement as family needs dictate without harming their chances for promotion later.

For example, 33% of respondents said they would like the ability to turn down a promotion without losing the chance to be offered it again, and 23% want the ability to move laterally in the organization.

A similar Catalyst study in 1981 found that couples thought the problem of work-life balance would be solved if only they could manage their home responsibilities better.

The most recent study uncovered a shift: “In 1997, the majority of dual-career couples assume their employers should address their needs, offering informal flexibility or a wide range of advancement options. Such couples report they have control over their home lives; they need their employers to provide them with more control over their work lives in order to manage the overlap between work and home.”

*

The ‘90s couples are fairly satisfied with their ability to balance work responsibilities and home responsibilities, although men (73%) were more happy with their balance than women (58%), the survey found.

The biggest perceived benefit from a two-career marriage was the increased income (85%), though 67% said having a working spouse gave them the freedom to take career risks such as leaving a job that was unsatisfying. Nearly 30% cited psychological benefits such as personal fulfillment, intellectual equality and emotional support.

“A significant portion of the U.S. labor force finds economic independence, security and satisfaction in the family’s second income,” said Catalyst President Sheila Wellington. “More than two-thirds of both wives and husbands reported that they would continue to work with or without the financial need to do so.”

The biggest difficulty, according to 56%, was lack of time.

“The results of this Catalyst study point to an inescapable conclusion,” the report says. “To ensure a stable managerial work force, employers must pay attention to the needs of dual-career couples, especially given the freedom and independence that having two careers impart to a marriage and the increasing incidence of two-career marriages at higher career levels.”

Has your company developed an interesting way to help employees balance work life and family life? Write to Balancing Act, Business Section, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, or e-mail nancy.rivera.brooks@latimes.com