What defines Work/Life balance

Work-life balance is a term regularly discussed within HR and recruitment circles, but what does it really mean in practice?

In an in-depth survey of almost 6,000 people across 20 different industries, SEEK came to a number of conclusions as to what defines WLB for different people.

- Flexible working hours: is the classic understanding of what work-life balance means.

This is different for different people, for example, the option to vary start or finish times may be important to some.

- Overtime: others may want the reassurance of fixed hours with no overtime.

Compensation for overtime is an important driver, but not everyone expects it to be financial. If the job is project-focused they may be willing to work longer hours when needed on the condition they get some time off in lieu when the dust has settled.

- Flexible working location: either from home or from the office.

Communicating the benefits of a job’s locality – its proximity to other services like banks, shops or childcare, or to something they value, such as the beach, a nice park, cycleways or easy parking - can put you ahead of the competition.