Confronting Work-Life Balance Challenges among Employees in High-Pressure Jobs: A Study of the Telecom Industry and Mobile Communication Company of Iran

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

2 Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

10.22059/jisr.2024.380941.1531

Abstract

Work-life balance is a common interdisciplinary concept in the social sciences, psychological sciences, and management sciences. The aforementioned equilibrium is more significantly jeopardized among knowledge workers. The telecom industry, which is at the forefront of technology and is integral to the daily lives of millions of individuals, is susceptible to the simultaneous intensification of social, group, psychological, and organizational pressures. Consequently, it is an appropriate example for investigating the process of change in this balance.
In this research, the sociological perspective was employed to investigate the methods by which 18 technical employees manage their work-life balance through in-depth interviews and qualitative methodology.
The research results indicate that the employees of this organization's approach to work-life balance is influenced by three categories of factors: job characteristics, organizational culture, and personal meaningful attitudes. More specific factors can be identified within these general categories, including: the organization’s result orientation, the organization’s constant stress and conflict with crises and disorders, the long working hours, the destructive competition between employees, the conservatism of managers, and the interest in the job and the organization.
The research findings indicate that despite its size and technological sophistication, Iran’s largest organization maintains a conservative organizational culture and is result-oriented. The organization’s responses to the circumstance of a lack of work-life balance have not been based on organizational knowledge, but rather on recreational and welfare facilities. Therefore, employees have adapted their personal characteristics and meanings, such as their passion for service and interest in the company, as a response to the stressful work conditions.

Keywords

References

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Quarterly of Social Studies and Research in Iran
Volume 13, Issue 4 - Serial Number 53
December 2024
Pages 495-514

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