Work time demands, work time control and supervisor support in the Australian construction industry: An analysis of work‐family interaction

This research aims to explore the relationship between work time demands, work time control and supervisor support in the Australian construction industry.

A survey was undertaken with waged and salaried construction workers in two construction organizations (n=261).

Work time demands were positively correlated with time‐ and strain‐based work interference with family life (WIF) but inversely correlated with time‐ and strain‐based family interference with work (FIW). Work‐family enrichment was inversely correlated with work time demands and positively correlated with both work time control and social support from one's supervisor. Respondents with high work time demands and low work time control (or low supervisor support) reported the highest levels of time‐ and strain‐based WIF. The lowest levels of WIF were reported by respondents in low work time demands and high work time control (or high supervisor support) jobs classifications. However, jobs high in both work time demands and work time control reported the highest levels of work‐to‐family enrichment.

The results suggest that work‐family conflict and work‐family enrichment should be treated as two distinct concepts in work‐family research and that the job demands‐control theory is helpful in explaining work‐family conflict but that alternative theories are needed to explain positive work‐family interactions.

The practical implication of the research is that reducing work time demands may be helpful in reducing work‐family conflict but that the provision of work domain resources is probably required to enable positive work‐family interactions.

Previous work‐family research has focused on job demands and resources separately, while the job strain literature has focused on the impact of job demands and the key resources of social support. The originality of this research is that it examines the extent to which different configurations of job demand and resource can explain experiences at the work‐family interface.