Mining work, family and community : a spatially-oriented approach to the impact of the Ravensthorpe nickel mine closure in remote Australia

While changes in work and employment practices in the mining sector have been profound, the literature addressing mining work is somewhat partial as it focuses primarily on the workplace as the key (or only) site of analysis, leaving the relationship between mining work and families and communities under-theorized. This article adopts a spatially oriented, case-study approach to the sudden closure of the Ravensthorpe nickel mine in the south-west of Western Australia to explore the interplay between the new scales and mobilities of labour and capital and work–family–community connections in mining. In the context of the dramatically reconfigured industrial arena of mining work, the study contributes to a theoretical engagement between employment relations and the spatial dimensions of family and community in resource-affected communities.

Role salience and support as moderators of demand/conflict relationships in China

This study examined the effects of role demand on both work–family conflict and family–work conflict, and the moderating effects of role salience and support on these relationships. Based on 391 dual-career (managerial and blue-collar employees) couples from a Taiwanese company in China, the results of this survey study showed clear gender differences in the patterns of relationships observed. For men, the most important demands that negatively impacted on work–family conflict were frequency of overtime and frequency of socializing for work purposes (yingchou), and supervisory support buffered the negative impact of frequent overtime. For women however, strong supervisory support and low work role salience were more important for reducing work–family conflict, and there was no significant main effect found for any of the role demand factors. Furthermore, women with high work role salience were more likely to feel the impact of yingchou on work–family conflict. In the family domain, the most influential demand for men was hours spent on household tasks, but for women, it was the frequency of family-related leave. Interestingly, males reported higher family role salience than females and spouse support intensified rather than buffered the positive impact of hours spent on household tasks on family–work conflict for males.

The impact of work-family programs on the relationship between gender diversity and performance

Work–family programs signal an employer's perspective on gender diversity to employees, and can influence whether the effects of diversity on performance are positive or negative. This article tests the interactive effects of nonmanagement gender diversity and work–family programs on productivity, and management gender diversity and work–family programs on financial performance. The predictions were tested in 198 Australian publicly listed organizations using primary (survey) and secondary (publicly available) data based on a two-year time lag between diversity and performance. The findings indicate that nonmanagement gender diversity leads to higher productivity in organizations with many work–family programs, and management gender diversity leads to lower financial performance in organizations with few work–family programs. The results suggest different business cases at nonmanagement and management levels for the adoption of work–family programs in gender-diverse organizations.

Maternal employment, work experiences, and financial well-being of Australian mothers who care for young children with special health care needs

The employment and work experiences of mothers who care for young children with special health care needs is the focus of this study. It addresses a gap in the research literature, by providing an understanding of how mothers’ caring role may affect employment conditions, family life, and financial well-being. Quantitative data are drawn from Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. The current study employs a matched case–control methodology to compare the experiences of a group of 292 mothers whose children (aged 4-5 years) with long-term special health care needs with those mothers whose children were typically developing. There were few differences between the two groups with regard to job characteristics and job quality. There were significant differences between the two groups with regard to work–family balance. Fewer mothers with children with special health care needs reported work having a positive effect on family functioning.