This study deals with the issue of Work-Family Balance (WFB) and how it varies as per life stage and experience. Age and total experience are important factors that impact WFB significantly. In defense, Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), the career advancement and promotion are time-based irrespective of outstanding performance put in by the employees. The aim of this paper is how WFB varies as per experience in this organizational setting. The word “work-family balance” is used to include all employed people irrespective of their marital and parental status so that officers can experience a better fit between their professional and personal lives. The study covers various aspects of WFB—work, sleep, family time, management of work and family and commuting. To measure WFB among officers of Bangalore, the researchers developed a 26-item scale to measure various aspects of WFB. The reliability of the scale is discussed. The findings of the study indicate that WFB varies as per age and experience and are important variables influencing WFB significantly.

The term “Work-Family Balance (WFB)” was coined in 1986 (Lockwood, 2003) in response to the growing concerns of people and organizations that work is taking a toll on their family life. In India, the work-family issue is in tandem with the social and institutional context of the country. One might feel that his/her life is “out of balance” and may be confused as to what efforts need to be taken to balance it.

The dual-earner families face much work-family conflict than single-earner families due to interference of work and family domains (Jacobs and Winslow, 2004; and King, 2005). The dividing line between work and free time is not distinct as some people draw more life satisfaction from their work than from free time activities (Fisher and Layte, 2004). WFB is not just about working fewer hours and getting leisure hours back, but it is also about how effectively you divide the time proportionately between work and family domains to get the maximum benefit of the given time. Managing work-family boundaries also plays an important role in balancing work and family domains.

In India, the response of organizations to work-family issues has been limited due to various reasons like a culture that does not empower women, a notion that the joint Indian family is in a better position to provide support than non-family institutions and low rate of organized work-force participation among women than men (Rajadhyaksha, 2012). The most developed work-family programs advent from public sector like reduced hours, career break leave, parental leave and sickness leave. In the private sector, the rigorous work-family programs are offered in ITES and IT multinational companies.

Organizational Behavior Journal, Work-Family Balance, Life Stage and Total Experience, An Empirical Study Among Officers, Defense (Central Public Sector Enterprises) in Bangalore