Business Report on Inflexible Working Hours and Gender Inequality

This business report examines the detrimental impact of inflexible working hours for men on women's career advancement, drawing upon a contemporary news story as its primary focus. The report identifies the core issue of inflexible work schedules as a significant barrier to women's professional success, especially when coupled with the lack of paternal leave and flexible options. It analyzes the issue through a human resource management lens, highlighting the pay gap between men and women and the resulting inequality in the workplace. The report discusses the application of relevant theories, such as Maslow's hierarchy of needs, to understand employee motivation and retention. It provides recommendations, including the implementation of flexible working hours for both men and women, to foster a more equitable and supportive work environment. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of human resource departments adopting policies that promote equal opportunities, address pay gaps, and recognize the value of paternal care in order to enhance women's careers and overall organizational performance.

1Running Head: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Human Resource Management

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Executive summary:
Human resource management deals with the employees in an organisation, who are considered
as the most important resource belonging to an organisation. The report has successfully
identified the various issues in Human Resource Management by analysing several case studies.
The two main issues identified in the report are unequal payment for men and women and in
flexible working hours for male workers which poses as a barrier or a hindrance two women in
their professional life. The report has also identified the measures that are taken by the Human
Resource Department of various organisations to resolve the issues. The report has identified
that the Human Resource Department makes use of some theories such as Maslow's hierarchy of
needs theory for motivating the employees. The report has also provided suitable
recommendations which includes adapting flexible working hours to ensure proper Human
Resource Management and reduction of the issues.

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Table of Contents
Introduction 4
Discussion 5
Conclusion 9
References 10

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Introduction
The human resource management of the organization looks after different aspects related
to the employees in the organization. The primary objective of human resource management look
after the well-being of the employees working in the organization. Apart from this, there are
many roles and responsibilities that are played by the human resource management of different
organizations and they are recruitment and selection, solving the grievances among the
employees, improving communication in between the employees and drafting employee friendly
and employee effective norms and principles in the organization. In this report, one of the major
issues related to human resource management will be discussed. Through some reports and
research it has been found out that, inflexible working hours for males is detrimental to a
women’s career. All through the report various case studies and discussed will be done on the
topic mentioned. In addition to this, some recommendations and suggestions will be provided to
encounter the prevailing situation.

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Discussion
Inflexible working hours for men is an alarming issue for a women’s career. Often the
problem of inflexible working hours for men creates a barrier for the women to climb up the
corporate ladder and become successful in the professional domain (Colbert, 2014). Most of the
organizations in Australia and other parts of the world do not practice flexible working hours for
the male employees. They are asked to work in strict hours. This possess a great problem for the
women. In case of when the women bears a child, she has to remain indoors to the maternal care
(ABC News, 2018). Often she quits works as the husband do not get parental leaves and flexible
working hours to look after the child. In the present scenario, more organizations are coming up
and are supporting the issue of flexible working hours for men as well. Niki Vincent who is the
Commissioner for Equal Opportunity in South Australia, said that just because women has to
bear the lion portion of child care they are unable to return to work. According to her, the need of
the hour is to have flexible working hours for men as well. However, most of the organizations
do not practice it. In South Australia and in other parts of the country too, there are provisions for
flexible working hour practices for the female employees. But, there are no such provisions for
male employees in the organization. Men working in flexible hours still have a stigma attached
to it (Armstrong & Taylor, 2014).
In Australia, the National Equal Pay Day falls on 31 August and this day has escalated
this issue on the fore front. In Australia, before the ending of the financial year, the women
employees have to work for 2 months extra in order to achieve equal pay as their male
counterpart. On an average in a week men earn $244 more than the female employees and this
highlighted the national pay gap in the country. The national pay gap in the country is 14.6%.
According to Dr Vincent, if men are provided with flexible working hours, it will have a positive
effect on the pay gap among the men and the women. Women has potential equal to that of men.
When equal opportunities are given to them, they can be positioned at leadership roles and
managerial roles in various organization (Collings, Wood & Szamosi, 2018).
The problem of inflexibility in the working hours for men, is a serious threat for a
women’s career. In addition to this, pay gap increases and there is inequality in the professional
workplace. Paternal care is as important as maternal care and it is high time that the
organizations and the human resource management to consider this fact. Paternal care helps

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strengthen the bond between the child and the father. According to some researchers it has been
found out that flexible working hours for men will boost up the women’s career (Brewster &
Hegewisch, 2017). Deloitte is an organization that grants parental leave on special request. This
trend should be followed in the other companies as well.
Identification of the Key Human Resource Issues
According to the reports discussed above, two key issues have been identified in this
assignment. One is the pay gap between the men and the women in the working sector and
inflexible working hours for men in the different organization (Brewster, Chung & Sparrow,
2016). Both the issues needs to be handled by the human resource department of the
organization. Unequal pay among the men and the women in the organization is detrimental to
the motivation with which women employees work in the organization. It makes the women
employees think that they are not getting the worth of the activities they are performing. In
addition to this, inflexible working hours for the men often makes women quit their job in order
to take care of the little ones. It has been noticed that, due to inflexibility among the working
hours for the men, the women has to bear all the burden of family responsibilities (Reiche et al.,
2016). This issue should be carefully judged by the human resource department of the
organization and some rules needs to be drafted regarding it. Apart f)rom this, it has been noticed
that, women employees are not given promotions equally when compared to the men in the
workplace. The human resource manager have to understand the fact that flexible working hours
for the men will help women give greater concentration in their professional life (Wiley Direct,
2018).
Discussion of the Issue related to relevant frameworks and Theories
Some human resource managers draft employee friendly policies on their own by
evaluating the prevailing situations in the organization. Other managers in the human resource
management take ideas from relevant frameworks and theories (Reiche, Harzing & Tenzer,
2018). One of the most potential theories of the human resource management is Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs. This model or theory is an effective one to increase the motivation of the
employees in the workplace. The model is divided into five parts and each part talks about
fulfilling the needs and demands of the employees in the organization. It is very important to
understand that meeting the demands of the employees is require in the organization. There are

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five kinds of needs of the employees in the organization (Tichy, 2018). The needs of the
employees are physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging, esteem and self-
actualization. The issue that has been talked about in this report belongs to the tier of love and
belonging. This is an important fact for employee motivation and retention in the organization.
The implementation of flexible working hours for the employees in the organization will
increase love and belonging in them towards their family members as well as their organization.
It is important for the human resource managers to understand the fact that motivated employees
cater to the objectives of the organization in a better way (Noe et al., 2011). Therefore, when
organizations will draft employee-friendly policies it will help in the growth of the employees as
well as the organization.
In this matter other relevant theories will also help in curbing the situation that has been
mentioned above. The human resource managers needs to be very efficient in solving the
grievances of the employees in the organization (Armstrong & Lorentzen, 2016). Providing
flexible working hours to the male employees in the organization will help them in gaining
motivation. The male employees will also think that the organization thinks about them and their
family life as well. Therefore, it is high time for the managers to understand the positive
outcomes of flexible working hours.
Recommendations for the Future
The human resource management should take up the concept of flexible working hours
for men very seriously. All the employees in the organization should equally treated. When there
is pay gap in the organizations, it impacts the productivity of the employees in the organization.
Organizations all over Australia, should develop flexible working practices for the male
employees. The correct steps need to be designed and implemented by the human resource
management of the organization (Schuler & Jackson, 2015). In order to design policies, the
human resource management has to understand the importance of paternal care in care giving
among the children. Flexible working policies can help solve this problem. Some
recommendations for the problem discussed above are as follows:
The human resource department should enable flexible working hours for both men and
women in the organization. This will help the women employees have a better career without
compromising of the care provided to the children. These flexible policies should equal for men

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as well as the women employees in the organization. After childbirth, and till one year men
should be provided with flexible working hours. This will make them provide primary care to
their children. Giving out primary care often strengthens the bond between the father and the
children. It is equally important for the human resource management monitor the fact that the
routine of flexible hours should not be misused by the male employees working in the
organization (Wright & Snell, 2013). Flexible working hours will make parents share their duties
regarding their child. When this step is implemented, it will be of a great boost to the career of
the women. It is important for the human resource managers to understand the fact that women
are as potential as men are in the workplace. Therefore, not giving women equal opportunities in
the workplace will hamper the economic growth of the country (Delery & Doty, 2016).
Equal promotions should be granted to men and women in the organization. This will
help women to stay motivated in the organization and be more productive in their professional
life.

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Conclusion
In this assignment, many roles and responsibilities of the human resource department
have been highlighted. In addition to this, a grave issue like inflexible working hours for men
and its impact on the women’s career have also been highlighted. It is high time for the human
resource managers to understand the importance of flexible working hours of men regarding
parental care and responsibility sharing. It is important for the human resource managers to
implement some theories and models in the organization so that policies can be drafted easily for
the benefit of the organization. Flexible working hours for men will help women to excel in the
professional life without compromising on the care for the children. The human resource
department for various organizations should follow flexible working hours and practices for men
and initiate equal pay and recognition to the male and the female employees.

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References
ABC News. (2018)Could men's inflexible working arrangements be damaging the career
prospect of their wives?.Retrieved 30 September 2018, from
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-31/calls-for-better-working-hours-for-men/
10184968?section=business
Armstrong, M., & Lorentzen, J. F. (2016). A handbook of personnel management practice.
Armstrong, M., & Taylor, S. (2014). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice. Kogan Page Publishers.
Brewster, C., & Hegewisch, A. (Eds.). (2017). Policy and practice in European human resource
management: The Price Waterhouse Cranfield survey. Taylor & Francis.
Brewster, C., Chung, C., & Sparrow, P. (2016). Globalizing human resource management.
Routledge.
Colbert, B. A. (2014). The complex resource-based view: Implications for theory and practice in
strategic human resource management. Academy of management review, 29(3), 341-358.
Collings, D. G., Wood, G. T., & Szamosi, L. T. (2018). Human resource management: A critical
approach. In Human Resource Management (pp. 1-23). Routledge.
Delery, J. E., & Doty, D. H. (2016). Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource
management: Tests of universalistic, contingency, and configurational performance
predictions. Academy of management Journal, 39(4), 802-835.
Noe, R., Hollenbeck, J., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P. (2011). Human Resources Management:
Gaining a Competitive Advantage, Tenth Global Edition. McGraw-Hill Education.
Reiche, B. S., Harzing, A. W., & Tenzer, H. (Eds.). (2018). International human resource
management. SAGE Publications Limited.
Reiche, B. S., Stahl, G. K., Mendenhall, M. E., & Oddou, G. R. (Eds.). (2016). Readings and
cases in international human resource management. Taylor & Francis.
Schuler, R. S., & Jackson, S. E. (2015). Strategic human resource management. Wiley-
Blackwell.
Tichy, N. M. (2018). Strategic human resource management.
Wiley Direct. (2018). Human Resource Management, 9th Edition | $65 | Wiley Direct. Retrieved
from http://www.wileydirect.com.au/buy/human-resource-management-9th-edition/

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Wright, P. M., & Snell, S. A. (2013). Toward an integrative view of strategic human resource
management. Human resource management review, 1(3), 203-225.