Work-family balance and the spatial dimension: The example of Latrobe City

1. Work-family balance and the spatial dimension: The example of Latrobe City Iain Campbell*, Kerry Haynes*, Sara Charlesworth*, Marian Baird, Larissa Bamberry* * Centre for Applied Social Research

2. I. Background • An ARC-funded Linkage project: ‘A Regional Perspective on Work and Family Balance and Changes in Employment Regulation’ (with Victorian government industry partners: IRV and RDV). • Three conceptual components: • a) work-family balance; • b) space (incl. metropolitan versus regional); • c) employment practices and employment regulation. • Proposed data sources: • 2006 census data, key stakeholder interviews, regional forums; • CATI survey of 4,000 employees; • Industry studies. RMIT University

3. II. The spatial dimension • Literature on work-family balance. • Many achievements, including drawing attention to the crucial importance of the working-time dimension of jobs (which is in turn structured by employment regulation and employer labour-use practices). NB: Working-time features such as number and schedule of hours, workloads, leave provisions and the extent of employee control over working arrangements are rightly a focus for much research and policy. • But much of the research on work-family balance to date has neglected the spatial dimension – it has in effect been metro-centric. RMIT University

4. II. The spatial dimension • The factors that influence work-family balance are likely to vary by place: • Structure of job opportunities in a particular area, such as the strength of labour demand and the configuration of dominant industries and skill requirements • Labour regulations (possible influence of distance on government controls and monitoring) • Other regulations (social security, taxation, business regulation and business assistance) • Employer labour-use practices, influenced by a range of factors, including local labour market, industry structure, size of enterprise, and relation to regulatory bodies • Labour supply (age and skills of employees, household composition and strategies) • Availability of public and private infrastructure such as: • Child care • Schools/after care • Eldercare • Public transport • Health care • Education and training opportunities • Availability of essential services – location and opening hours (legal, banking, retail etc) • The nature of the local community, including spatial and social density, traditions of volunteering, the integration of employers and workers in institutions, local governments and community organisations) • Increased or decreased household costs (such as cost of petrol or cost of housing) RMIT University

5. II. The spatial dimension • It is likely that people in non-metropolitan regions will on average have fewer opportunities for overcoming work-family imbalances: • Tougher constraints, eg weaker labour demand, narrower labour market, more dependence on employers, less attention by employers to protective regulation? Less practical access to working-time flexibilities? • But some counter factors. More community spirit? Reduced cost of housing may mean less pressure on household budgets? RMIT University

6. III. Latrobe City RMIT University

7. III. Latrobe City • Latrobe Valley – brown coal (used for power generation) has supported the development of an industrial enclave in a rural landscape. • Four major urban centres + smaller townships and a rural hinterland. • A ‘victim of industrial restructuring’ (Birrell 2001)? As a result of restructuring and then privatisation of the State Electricity Commission (SEC), amalgamation of local councils, compulsory competitive tendering, etc in the 1990s. This produced population decline and high unemployment rates. RMIT University

8. III. Latrobe City • 2006 Census data - differences from metro Melbourne: • Slightly different population structure... • Employment rates much lower for women and men • Fewer full-time jobs amongst employed women • Higher official unemployment (but NB: hidden unemployment and underemployment) • Narrower occupational and industry structure • Greater reliance on pensions and benefits • Lower family household incomes • Only a glimpse... But it suggests, as for other non-metropolitan regions, more formidable constraints on work-family balance. • See also evidence on infrastructure: childcare, education and training opportunities, transport. RMIT University

9. III. Latrobe City Figure 1: Family household weekly income, Latrobe City and Melbourne SD, 2006 RMIT University

10. IV. Conclusion • The next stages of the research... RMIT University