In 2000, 79 percent of married Canadian women between the ages of 25 and 44 were in the labour force and 75 percent were employed.1 Many Canadian families with working parents use costly child-care, and many of these families take advantage of the child-care expense deduction (CCED): in 1998, 71 percent of families with pre-school children used child-care services to work or study at a given point in time,2 and 868,460 taxfilers reported nearly $2.4 billion in child-care expenditures on 1,390,200 children.3 In this thesis, I examine the effects of parental labour supply and child-care use on children, the impacts that child-care costs have on the labour supply of married mothers, and the fairness of the tax system with respect to child-care costs. Chapters I, and V are introductory and concluding chapters, respectively. In chapter II, I consider the question of whether parental labour supply and child-care use affect child cognitive and behavioural outcomes. Parental labour supply reduces the amount of time parents have for their children. On the other hand, parents can replace their own time with child-care services and can also purchase more market goods with additional income earned at work. I examine this question using the first three cycles of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY), which provide both a large sample size and a rich source of data, including controls for parenting skills. The possible joint detennination of labour supply and child outcomes is also tested. In chapter III, I estimate the impact of child-care costs on the return to work of married Canadian women with children under three, using data from the 1988 Canadian National Childcare Survey (CNCCS) and Labour Market Activity Survey (LMAS). Data from the 1995 Canadian General Social Survey indicate that Canadian mothers have split views on the issue of whether parental labour supply has deleterious effects on child outcomes. Furthermore, women's views on these issues tend to be consistent with their labour supply, suggesting their views may affect whether they choose to work or not. If women's preferences for work are based on thenviews and are correlated with other explanatory variables such as education and cost of care, the estimated coefficients on these explanatory variables will be biased. In order to allow for these potential differences in responsiveness to childcare costs, I estimate separate models where current or previous occupation and weeks worked in the previous 12 months are used as control variables in the estimation to account for heterogeneity of preferences. In chapter IV of the thesis, I use data from the CNCCS and LMAS to examine the vertical and horizontal equity of the CCED. Vertical equity is evaluated by comparing CCED benefit rates for different family levels of earnings. This is done for dual earner families with childcare costs and similar characteristics. Horizontal equity is examined by investigating whether the existence of the CCED increases or decreases the difference between effective tax rates of families with similar earnings but different labour supplies. I use measures of actual and potential earnings to evaluate both vertical and horizontal equity. / Arts, Faculty of / Vancouver School of Economics / Graduate

M.Com. (Industrial Psychology) / Orientation: An increasing number of women entering the workplace are experiencing inter-role conflict in their home and work domains. As a result, work-family conflict may occur. This may impact level of work engagement women experience. Research purpose: The study aimed to determine the effect of work-family conflict on work engagement amidst working mothers. In addition, the study investigated the moderating effect of the personality traits extraversion and agreeableness on the correlation between work engagement and work-family conflict. Motivation for the study: A narrow body of knowledge exists that explores the implications of work-family conflict in the South African context, particularly among working mothers. Research design, approach and method: The research design was quantitative and cross-sectional. The sample (n=326) encompassed working mothers. The data was collected by using the Work-to-Family Conflict questionnaire (Netemeyer, Boles & McMurrian, 1996), the Basic Traits Inventory (BTI) (Taylor & de Bruin, 2006) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) (Schaufeli, Salanova, González-Romá & Bakker, 2002). Main finding: This study found that work-family conflict predicts work engagement among working mothers. In addition, the personality traits extraversion and agreeableness predict work engagement but do not moderate the relationship between work-family conflict and work engagement within this sample. Practical/managerial implications: The results of this investigation contribute to the narrow amount of research conducted in the South African context with regard to work-family conflict and work engagement, especially among working mothers. In addition, organisations may gain insight into the effects of work-family conflict on work engagement. Organisations should therefore take measures to provide support to employees so as to decrease the level of iv work-family conflict they experience and consequently, increase work engagement. This study also demonstrates the effect of personality on work engagement.

This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of biofeedback-assisted relaxation therapy on reducing psychophysiological stress levels of working professional mothers. Participants were 14 working professional mothers from a major daily newspaper. Reported stress levels were measured with the 123 question Stress Profile (Nowack, 1990) three times during the eight week treatment study that was held at the women's workplace. A repeated measure ANOVA design was used to analyze the data and a partial eta squared was used to calculate effect size. As hypothesized, the study found a statistically significant reduction of reported stress levels (F=8.62; p=.001) and a statistically significant (F=3.65; p=.01) reduction in measured muscle tension across subjects. Practical significance (effect size) was found for reduction in reported stress levels (n=.39) and reduction in muscle tension (n=.21).

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Orientation: Rapid changes in the workforce, such as increases in working women and dual-earner couples and single parent families, have led to increases for both men and women in their work and household responsibilities. Employees who are unable to fulfil both work and non-work roles efficiently may experience problems with their health and psychological state, have reduced job satisfaction, burnout, higher absenteeism and work tension. In order to assist employees during these turbulent times many organisations have implemented family-friendly programmes to accommodate employees. The specific needs of employees in the South African context in terms of family-friendly programme seem to be unknown. Research purpose: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the receptiveness of South African working mothers towards a family-friendly programme and to determine the desired features of such a programme. Motivation for the study: Research regarding the use and benefits of family-friendly programmes was done in the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom and Asia. However, the specific needs of employees in the South African context in terms of family-friendly programmes seem to be unknown. Therefore, in this study, the focus will be to explore the receptiveness of working mothers towards a family-friendly programme, as well what an effective family-family programme might entail for them in the South African context. Research approach, design and method: The research was conducted using a qualitative research design within the interpretivism paradigm. A combined convenient and purposive non-probability sample (N = 11) was taken from working mothers employed at a printing and bar coding organisation in Gauteng. Data was collected by means of semi-structured interviews and analysed by making use of thematic analysis. Main findings: The results of this study indicate that working mothers experience work-life conflict and they would make use of family-friendly programmes if their organisations could provide these programmes. They would like features such as a day-care facility, transport service, flexible working hours, working from home, career guidance, a support group for parents and a baby room. Practical/Managerial implications: This research identified that there is a need for family-friendly programmes in the South African context. Such programmes can assist employees in reducing work-life conflict and, mostly likely, enhance job satisfaction and work engagement. Contribution/Value-add: This study can possibly create awareness about the need for family-friendly programmes in South Africa and provide management with insight about the desired features of such a programme. This study further adds value to the limited research about the needs and desired features of a family-friendly programme in the South African context. / Mini Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Human Resource Management / MCom / Unrestricted

This qualitative study sought to explore low income working mother's perceptions of community support for exclusive breastfeeding after returning to work. The results from 12 indepth semi-structured interviews conducted with low income mothers, working full-time in a clothing factory located in the Cape Flats area, were analysed using thematic analysis. Three key themes emerged. The mothers generally expressed that they received informational support for breastfeeding from various members of their community, however there was a lack of emotional, instrumental, and appraisal support for these working mothers to continue to exclusively breastfeed after returning to work. Furthermore, the mothers come from communities in which there is a shared responsibility for raising babies. They are often given instructions and advice on how to feed their babies by different people and this advice often contradicts the World Health Organization's breastfeeding recommendations. Lastly, the mothers expressed that breastfeeding is an act that is usually reserved for stay at home mothers. Working mothers' breastfeeding intentions are generally not supported within their communities and working mothers are often encouraged to give their babies formula and other feeds as early as possible. It is important for organisations employing low-income mothers to understand the community context when designing workplace policies and interventions aimed at promoting exclusive breastfeeding. This will allow organizations to address their employees breastfeeding challenges in a culturally sensitive ways.

Past literature suggests that working mothers are at an increased risk for experiencing role strain compared to other employed adults. The current study investigated attitudes and beliefs of 783 working mothers of 15-month-old children using data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. Working mothers' levels of role strain was associated with perceived social support, attitudes toward maternal employment, job and parental role quality, financial stress, and depression. Negative attitudes toward maternal employment predicted maternal separation anxiety, while positive attitudes toward employment did not affect separation anxiety. These findings have implications for the importance of decreasing role strain in working mothers.

The phenomenal feminisation of the South African labour force since the first democratic elections in 1994 is a result of the new democratic government’s efforts to transform South African society into a just, non-discriminatory and non-sexist society. This has, however, heightened several serious psychosocial problems facing working women, especially single working mothers, as they struggle to balance work and home responsibilities. The study was undertaken, firstly, to develop a valid and reliable measuring instrument to survey the problems and pressures experienced by single mothers in management and professional occupations in South Africa and, secondly, to obtain data on single working mothers’ perceptions about the resources they believe would assist them to mitigate the negative effects of the work-home conflict. To achieve these objectives, an exploratory, sequential, mixed method design was employed within a feminist perspective: First, based on the information obtained from theoretical and empirical data about the problems and perceived support of working mothers, semistructured interviews were held with 17 women in management and professional occupations (ten women in dual-career families and seven single working mothers). Then, on the basis of the interviews, a questionnaire was developed that was piloted among 30 experts and developed according to Lawshe’s principles. This questionnaire was called the Work-Family Pressure and Support Questionnaire (W-FPSQ). It was used in conjunction with the Overall Stress Index (OSI) and the Coping Behaviour Index (CBI) to determine the relationship and effect of supportive resources and coping behaviour on the work-family pressure and stress experienced by a purposive convenience sample of 104 single and 101 dual-career mothers (n=205). For the purposes of this study, descriptive, comparative, associational and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data, using SPSS for Windows, Release 17. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), with varimax rotation, was employed to explore the internal structure and validity of the W-FPSQ, the OSI, and the CBI. The reliability of the questionnaires was determined by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for each scale of the measures. The results indicated that the three questionnaires were sufficiently reliable and valid to capture the present sample of working mothers’ experience of work-family pressures and stress and to discover the resources they perceived as supporting them in coping with work and family demands. The comparison of the 104 single working mothers with the 101 married working mothers showed that the single mothers’ mean rank scores were significantly lower than those of their married counterparts on the five support scales and on the coping behaviour scale, and significantly higher on the workfamily pressure and stress scales. The computed logistic regression model indicated that management support, organisational flexibility, time for family interaction, work-family pressure and stress were a set of variables that distinguished reliably between the single and married mothers in the sample. The study has clearly confirmed Gill and Davidson’s (2001:397) proposition that single working mothers are a ‘distinct group facing unique problems and pressures, and deserve to be recognized as such’. The problems they face as captured in this study demand a multi-pronged approach requiring organisations to provide management support, opportunities for personal growth and career development, work flexibility, time for family interaction and childcare facilities. These resources and a work-family-friendly environment will improve their work attitudes, job performance and well-being. Considering the proportion of single mothers in the society and the impact of their status on their children’s development, the issue of single working mothers and their needs deserves urgent attention. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

This study focuses on understanding supervisors' and managers' experiences of supporting breastfeeding support at work in the context of clothing factories in the Western Cape, South Africa. Return to full-time employment after maternity leave is the leading cause affecting mothers' breastfeeding decisions. A qualitative, exploratory research design was used. Secondary qualitative data from 17 in-depth semi-structured interviews with supervisors and managers were analysed using a thematic analysis approach. Three major themes emerged: Influence of supervisors' socio- cultural beliefs and personal experiences on support orientation; Navigating productivity, mothers' breastfeeding needs, and co-worker emotions; and the nature of maternity and breastfeeding conversations. Drawing from the study findings, implications for managerial practices and policy recommendations are proposed to advance managerial and supervisory support for breastfeeding at work in low-income workplaces.

Includes bibliography. / This study is a critical analysis of educare policy in South Africa with recommendations towards effective provision for the preschool child. The need for a radically revised policy, structure and provision system is based on the inadequacies, inefficiency and ineffectiveness of the present system. A quantitative descriptive research design is used in which use is made predominantly of secondary data and field experience of the writer. Data collection was hindered by the lack of information available and the reluctance of certain authorities to provide information as requested. The historical development of educare in South Africa is outlined. Legislation which, impacts on educare is recorded and the present education and care policies and structures are described. The extent of educare provision is quantified focusing on who is provided for and who is not. Gil's (1981) framework for Analysis and Synthesis of Social Policies is used in analysing educare policy within the Social Planning and Administration paradigm. The study contends that there is no clear unitary discernible educare policy in existence and this has resulted in fragmented structures controlling educare in this country. Particular attention is made to the ideological and value underpinnings of educare policy, structure and provision. The result is an array of services which are uncoordinated and inadequate in terms of the need and demand. The study concludes by making recommendations aimed at eliminating the inadequacies highlighted. A radically revised educare policy is proposed. A three-tier structure with defined responsibilities and functions at each level is suggested. It is the writers belief that implementation of these recommendations will contribute to the solution of problems faced in the educare field today.