Create awareness
When an organisation implements new policies it is important that employees are made aware of the existence of these policies. Policies need to be effectively and appropriately communicated to the workforce and be well-articulated, in order to be adopted by employees.
A formal communication strategy is essential when introducing work-life balance policies. Communication is best achieved through a variety of channels, including via staff meetings, e-mail, newsletters, fact sheets, brochures, posters, articles in any in-house magazines, and information packages. It is often necessary to use a variety of channels, because employees may not always be accessible via certain channels. For example, not all employees have access to e-mail, and the use of staff meetings to distribute information will be inefficient in departments or organisations where staff meetings are held at irregular and infrequent intervals. In addition to these more practical issues of effective communication, research has shown that different people have different preferences for presentation of information. Some people absorb information better when presented orally, such as during staff meetings, while other employees absorb information better if presented in a colourful brochure.
In addition, a formal communication of policies should be implemented in the human resources, or other relevant, handbook held by an organisation, outlining the details of the policy and the responsibilities of both staff and managers.
New employees should be made aware of employment policies during their induction. Ideally, these policies should be published in a brochure to provide new employees with ready and easy access to the information.
It is recommended that new or changed policies are reinforced by training managers in how to apply the policies. This would include, for example, explaining the possible results of not adhering to the policy; responsibilities of managers, employees and human resources staff; circumstances in which the policy applies; possible deviations; and related policies for reference.
Last updated 21 July 2009
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