Work-Life Balance among Female Administrators in Public Universities in Ghana

Abstract

Work-life balance is a major concern for people and institutions concerned about the quality of working life relative to the broader quality of life. The study sought to investigate sources, effects and the strategies adopted to manage work-life balance by female administrators in public universities in Ghana. The study adopted the qualitative research design. The study population comprised female administrators in three public universities, representatives of human resource departments in the selected public universities, Executives of women caucuses in the universities, National Executives of GAUA, and representatives from MGCSP and Social Welfare Department. A total of 74 respondents were sampled for the study. Purposive sampling was used to sample the institutional representatives, whereas snowball sampling was used to select the female administrators. Interview and focus group discussion guides were used as instruments for collecting data for the study. Narrative analysis was used to analyse the data. The study found that socio-cultural factors such as marriage, family stage, and reproductive processes were cardinal sources of competing for work-life demands on female administrators in public universities in Ghana. The universities had instituted some policies and strategies to ensure work-life balance for workers in Ghana, some of which were leave policies, welfare policies, educational policies, and accommodation policies. However, the study found that the policies were too general and less suited for the peculiar needs of female administrators. Strategies adopted by the female administrators in public universities in Ghana to ensure work-life balance included engaging the support of family members, and hiring nannies to support the performance of home duties. It was, however, found that having support from family members was the most effective strategy to achieve work-life balance. Poor background checks and lack of a national policy to regulate the services of nannies made it less effective and uncomfortable for female administrators to use them to attain work-life balance. Since most of the approaches were less effective in ensuring work-life balance for female administrators in public universities, many of the female administrators experienced work-life imbalances. The female administrators of public universities in Ghana experienced many negative effects of work-life imbalance relationships. Some of the undesirable effects of work-life imbalance were slowing down of career progression, deterioration in health, marital separation and divorce, and reduction in job performance. The study recommends that the Department of Social Welfare in collaboration with the MGCSP should embark on a vigorous sensitisation program on cultural reorientation to encourage husbands to understand the need to support their wives at home. The MGCSP in collaboration with the Ministry of Education should incorporate crèche schools in the formal education system. Also, the MGCSP in collaboration with the Department of Social Welfare should enact a policy to regulate the services of nannies in the country.