A Training Intervention for Supervisors to Support a Work-Life Policy Implementation

Details

• Personal Author:
  Anger WK ; Glass N ; Hanson G ; Lahamar N ; Perrin N
• Description:
  Background: Effective policy implementation is essential for a healthy workplace. The Ryan-Kossek 2008 model for work-life policy adoption suggests that supervisors as gatekeepers between employer and employee need to know how to support and communicate benefit regulations. This article describes a workplace intervention on a national employee benefit, Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and evaluates the effectiveness of the intervention on supervisor knowledge, awareness, and experience with FMLA. Methods: The intervention consisted of computer-based training (CBT) and a survey measuring awareness and experience with FMLA. The training was administered to 793 county government supervisors in the state of Oregon, USA. Results: More than 35% of supervisors reported no previous training on FMLA and the training pre-test revealed a lack of knowledge regarding benefit coverage and employer responsibilities. The CBT achieved: (1) a significant learning effect and large effect size of d = 2.0, (2) a positive reaction to the training and its design, and (3) evidence of increased knowledge and awareness regarding FMLA. Conclusion: CBT is an effective strategy to increase supervisors' knowledge and awareness to support policy implementation. The lack of supervisor training and knowledge of an important but complex employee benefit exposes a serious impediment to effective policy implementation and may lead to negative outcomes for the organization and the employee, supporting the Ryan-Kossek model. The results further demonstrate that long-time employees need supplementary training on complex workplace policies such as FMLA. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Computers Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Benefit Evaluation Information Dissemination Intervention Policy Supervisory Personnel Training Training Effectiveness Work-life Balance
• ISSN:
  2093-7911
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Maryland ; Oregon ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  166-176
• Volume:
  4
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20054151
• Citation:
  Saf Health Work 2013 Sep; 4(3):166-176
• Contact Point Address:
  Naima Laharnar, Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology (CROET), Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97239-3849, USA
• Email:
  laharnar@ohsu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• Performing Organization:
  Johns Hopkins University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20080901
• Source Full Name:
  Safety and Health at Work
• End Date:
  20140831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2b9bd1aeae7ffbb1620005c6c64f54fc07ca7ba15461256344628b0c934c814f642c22de5123076811353c4aa99591d202b7748140800f921a0eda0ac6231e50
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/216775/cdc_216775_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 660.39 KB ]