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Discrimination against workers because of their family responsibilities can violate federal law, yet scholars know little about the context surrounding perceived family responsibilities discrimination (FRD). This chapter investigates both the types of caregiving responsibilities that put workers at risk of FRD and the organizational contexts that give rise to perceived FRD.

We identify features of FRD which make detecting it particularly difficult and theorize the mechanisms by which caregiving responsibilities and organizational contexts lead to perceived FRD. We draw on data from the 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce for our empirical analysis.

Caregivers who provide both child and eldercare are more likely to perceive FRD than caregivers who provide one type of care, as are people who experience high levels of family-to-work interference and who spend more daily time on childcare. Certain family-friendly and meritocratic organizational contexts are associated with lower perceived FRD.

We measure perceptions, not actual discrimination on the basis of family care responsibilities. Our research cannot pinpoint the factors which intensify or lessen actual discrimination, just perceptions of it.

By pinpointing the characteristics of organizations in which perceived FRD occurs, this chapter shows how organizations can create workplaces in which perceived FRD is less likely.

This paper will consider the notion of “parental responsibility” in British policy in relation to two major pieces of legislation, the Children Act 1989 and the Child Support Act 1991. These have considerable impact on the shape of policy in relation to families with children in the 1990s. These two Acts originate in different processes and address different areas of the family‐ state interaction — in the case of the Children Act, public and private law concerning who should care for children in case of dispute or problems; in the case of the Child Support Act, the question of how children should be financially maintained. But both embody a notion of greater parental responsibilities (as opposed to rights) which cannot be lightly surrendered or neglected. The differences and similarities between these two Acts will be examined, and the underlying theme of Conservative “family policy”, and its long‐term intentions and implications, will be addressed.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate public opinions towards elderly care. The authors analysed respondents’ opinions towards financial support, practical help and care for elderly people.

The authors used nationally representative data collected in Finland in 2012. Respondents represent an older generation (born between 1945 and 1950, n=1,959) and their adult children (born between 1962 and 1993, n=1,652).

First, the authors compared the opinions of older and younger Finns but did not find that older adults were more likely than younger adults support the state responsibility, or vice versa. It was also when only actual parent-child dyads (n=779) from same families were included. Next, the authors found that several socioeconomic and family-related variables were associated with public opinions of elderly care in both generations. For instance, in both generations lower-income individuals supported the state’s responsibility more compared to their better-off counterparts.

The study provides important knowledge on attitudes towards elderly care using unique two-generational data of younger and older adults.

Purpose – This chapter explores the m+eaning and significance of family business social responsibilities (FBSRs) using a metasystem approach, placing emphasis on the role of the family.

Design/Methodology/Approach – We employ a revelatory case study to investigate the complexity of family business (corporate) social responsibility. The main case, a German shoe retailer, is supplemented by other case illustrations that provide additional insights into FBSR.

Findings – To fully understand social responsibility in a family firm context, we need to include social initiatives that go beyond the actual family business as a unit. This FBSR connects family members outside and inside the business and across generations. As FBSR is formed through individual and family-level values, its character is idiosyncratic and contrasts the often standardized approaches in widely held firms.

Practical Implication – Family businesses need to go beyond the business as such when considering their engagement in social responsibility. Family ownership implies that all social initiatives conducted by family members, regardless if they are involved in the firm or not, are connected. This includes a shared responsibility for what family members do at present and have done in the past.

This paper aims to explore the impact of family ownership, and family commitment on employees' organizational identification (EOI) with Chinese family firms, and to test the mediating effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on this relationship.

The result reveals that family commitment positively influences employees’ organizational identification (EOI) with Chinese family firms. It is also shown that insiders’ responsibility (i.e. investors’ and employees’ responsibility) and public responsibility (i.e. community responsibility) positively influence EOI, and partially mediate the relationship between family commitment and EOI with Chinese family firms. In addition, the result indicates that family ownership positively influences insiders’ responsibility (i.e. investors’, and employees’ responsibility), outsiders’ responsibility (i.e. consumers’ responsibility), environmental responsibility and legal and ethical responsibility, and family commitment positively moderates the relationship between family ownership and insiders’ responsibility (i.e. investors’ and employees’ responsibility), outsiders’ responsibility (i.e. partners’ and consumers’ responsibility) and public responsibility (i.e. environmental responsibility) in Chinese family firms.

This study is the first to examine empirically the relationship between family involvement (i.e. family ownership, family commitment) and EOI from the viewpoint of CSR in Chinese family firms. The study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between family involvement and EOI, as well as the understanding of the influence of CSR on EOI with Chinese family firms.

This paper aims to examine the relationship between welfare state configurations, family status, family responsibilities, job attribute preferences, employment, and weekly paid work hours.

International data for women and men were analyzed separately using regressions to determine if different welfare state configurations and individual family status and responsibilities predicted job attribute preferences. Additional regressions examined the effects of welfare state configurations, family status, family responsibilities, and job attribute preferences on women's and men's employment and weekly paid work hours.

In many cases, the variables were significant predictors of women's and men's job attribute preferences, employment and paid work hours.

While the attributes that people seek from their employment vary from individual to individual, it is also important to recognize that there are cultural patterns that can inform motivational efforts.

This multinational study is the first to examine the relationship between family status, conducting housework, providing family income, and job attribute preferences while considering labor market opportunities for women and societal support for the family. In addition, it examines the effects of these variables on employment and weekly paid work hours.

The paper seeks to analyze empirically the consequences of family responsibilities for career success and the influence of career context variables and gender on this relationship.

The sample consists of 305 business school graduates (52 percent male) from a major Central European university who finished their studies around 2000 and who were in their early career stages (i.e. third and fourth career years).

The paper reports a negative relationship between family responsibilities and objective and subjective career success via work centrality. There is also substantive support for the effect of contextual factors on the relationship between family situations and career success, emphasizing the importance of a multi‐level perspective. Finally, evidence of gender effects exists.

The empirical generalizability of the results is limited by the structure of the sample. Qualitative in‐depth studies are needed to further understand the relationships found.

The results underscore the importance of the work‐family‐interface for employee retention measures. Tailored HR policies are crucial.

Theoretically, the paper develops a multi‐level causal model of specific aspects of work‐family relations including variables ranging from meso (career context) to more micro (family, individual). Empirically, the study focuses on young business professionals prior to having a family or in the early stages of their family life.

Globalisation provides new opportunities for immigrant women to supply financial benefits transnationally to uphold their families in their home countries. The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of Thai immigrant women regarding transnational family responsibilities effects on their health and wellness.

Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 40 Thai immigrant women, of which 34 described having transnational family responsibilities. The transcribed data were analysed using a phenomenographic approach.

The findings revealed five structural aspects of transnational family responsibilities of Thai immigrant women: being a dutiful daughter, being a caring mother, being a kind relative, being a “giving” person and striving for a wealthy life. The interviewees seldom encountered enough support from the spouse in handling their transnational family responsibilities. In general, a transnational marriage includes family responsibilities that are continuous and that often is the cause of migration.

This paper illuminates the transnational responsibilities of marriage migration and argues for women’s rights of culturally congruent health care.

Traditionally Thai women’s values are based on how they handle family responsibilities and acknowledging own health needs are not. These interviewees perceived doubled burden in terms of family responsibilities and workload in employed work, which contributed to poor health and wellness.

This paper aims to investigate work–life balance and job satisfaction in the emerging virtual work environments among women in patriarchal Nigerian society.

Data were collected with structured and semi-structured questionnaire from 316 participants who signed up for online affiliate marketing programs in Nigeria. The data were analysed with descriptive statistics, while the hypotheses were tested with partial least squares structural equation modelling.

The outcomes indicate insignificant conflict in the interface between remotely working from home and the discharge of family care responsibilities among married Nigerian women. Also, the women derive significant job satisfaction from virtual work settings. Outcomes from the semi-structured interviews indicate that Nigerian women receive more support in indoor household chores than outdoor household chores while performing virtual work duties from home locations with housemaids being the highest source of such support.

This study extends work–life balance literature from the traditional work environments to the emerging virtual work settings in Africa by providing empirical evidence that the emerging virtual work settings do not result in work–family conflict but rather yield significant job satisfaction among Nigerian women.

Increased participation of women in the labor force creates challenges for them to balance work and family obligations. The situation becomes more complicated in patriarchal societies such as Pakistan due to women's stereotypical domestic roles, religious prescriptions as well as cultural norms and values. This study aims to explore different influencing factors on women's work and family roles in the unique Pakistani socio‐economic and cultural environment.

Based on the interpretive phenomenological approach (IPA), this study explores different influencing factors on women's work and family roles in the unique Pakistani socio‐economic and cultural environment. The methodology helped to analyse data about challenges faced by women entrepreneurs to achieve work‐life balance as well as to have an insight about some of the techniques and effective strategies they use to balance work and family obligation.

The results show that among other motivational drivers to start their own businesses, achieving work‐life balance is one of the most significant ones. Their own businesses give them flexibility, control and freedom to juggle with their family and social responsibilities. Lack of sufficient time, gender bias, social and cultural norms as well as family responsibilities are the most significant challenges women face to achieve balance in a patriarchal Islamic society. Strategic planning, organising and delegating are the most effective strategies women use to cope with competing roles of work and family.

This ground‐breaking work in Pakistan on women entrepreneurs' work‐life balance may also inspire other women who want to start their entrepreneurial career.