The Concept of Work-Life Balance in The Hospitality Industry and its Employee’s Perceptions Towards it.

Abstract

Over the last few years, businesses as well as the public have heightened their interest on the concept of work-life balance. It has become one of the most privately and publicly discussed matters as it touches the daily lives of a vast number of individuals, therefore it has become one of the major concerns for most businesses. In the new era, the line between life and work has become the subject of interest for the society because of the increased pace of work, long working hours and the advancements in technology especially in the hospitality industry. Therefore, dealing with the balance of work and life has become a constant challenge for the society. Since global awareness regarding work-life balance is growing and has received substantial interest from the society, employers increased their attention on the specific concept as they realized it can have numerous benefits on individuals as well as on their businesses. The specific thesis focuses on the importance that work-life balance has on businesses (such as hotels) and the reasons that employers started implementing work-life balance programs and practices. It also investigates employees’ perceptions towards the term. In order to achieve this, primary and secondary research was conducted. The primary research was targeted on hotel managers in Cyprus as well as employees of the hotels. The primary research that was collected, widely agrees with previous research, eventually highlighting that work-life balance has various benefits to offer such as increased productivity, reduced family conflicts and more satisfied employees. It was also identified that employees in the hospitality industry found the concept extremely important. Therefore, they desire from hoteliers to invest more on the term.