Investigating Work-Life Balance amongst the Metal Industry Employees in South Africa

Work life balance is managing one’s work and non-work life. This includes managing relationships with family and friends, extracurricular activities such as sport or hobbies. Many employees are experiencing abridged quality of work life which is noticeable in the work -life imbalance. Work and personal life have difficulties, inconsistent job responsibilities and family responsibilities. This impacts on both male and females, all professionals working across all levels and industries around the world. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine how employees achieve work life balance. This was a cross-sectional study conducted amongst metal industry workers. Results showed that majority of employees felt that they were able to balance their work and non-work life. More than a third of the participants reported that shift work seldom interfered with domestic life in the past few weeks. There was a statistically significant relationship between employees that work shifts during non- working hours. Majority of employees agreed to achieving and maintaining work-life balance. This also included spending enough time at home with the family during non-working hours. Some employees spent their time relaxing at home, watching movies, whilst a few enjoyed exercising by walking, or going to the gym.