Are family-friendly workplace practices a valuable firm resource?

Nicholas Bloom, Tobias Kretschmer and John van Reenen

LSE Research Online Documents on Economics from London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library

Abstract: We study the determinants and consequences of family-friendly workplace practices (FFWP) using a sample of over 450 manufacturing firms in Germany, France, U.K., and U.S. We find a positive correlation between firm productivity and FFWP. This association disappears, however, once we control for a measure of the quality of management practices. We further find that firms with a higher proportion of female managers and more skilled workers, as well as well-managed firms, tend to implement more FFWP. Conversely, a firm's environment does not have a significant impact on the FFWP it provides.

Keywords: work-life balance; family-friendly work practices; nonmarket strategies; firm performance; management practices; resource-based view (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J81 M12 M52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011-04
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (95)

Published in Strategic Management Journal, April, 2011, 32(4), pp. 343-367. ISSN: 0143-2095

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Journal Article: Are family-friendly workplace practices a valuable firm resource? (2011)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ehl:lserod:33892

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