What type of workplace policies have proven the most effective for employees who balance home and work responsibilities?

Flexible policies that permit employees to balance home and work responsibilities (e.g., flexible starting and stopping times, opportunities to work from home, and time off to care for sick children) are positively associated with attendance, commitment to the organization, and work performance, and negatively associated with distress symptoms. Workplaces with onsite child care show lower rates of employee absenteeism and higher productivity as compared with those without child care. When adults are able to balance work and family, they are more productive and happy workers, more satisfied spouses, better parents, and experience greater well-being at home and work.