Context matters: decipher the work-life balance in China

Work-Life Balance (WLB) has become a prevalent mission of Human Resource Management in the last few decades. Informal support from line manager and co-workers was found particularly important during the implementation of WLB in well-regulated labour markets. This paper examines the role of informal support to attain work-life balance in China where formal work-life policy is still in its infancy, but employees have experienced unprecedented increasing in job demand due to rapid industrialisation, global competition, and high living costs. Developed from the Job-Demand-Resource model, this study unpacks the Work-Life Balance Context (WLBC) into organisational WLB culture, line manager and co-worker supports to examine its effect on the relationship between job demand and perceived WLB. Based on 312 valid survey responses and 23 semi-structured interview data from two large Stated-Owned Enterprises (SOE) in China, the mediating model in our quantitative analysis and thematically qualitative analysis reveal that WLBC does matter. However, perceived organisational work-life culture plays a fundamental role rather than line manager and co-worker support to attain WLB at SOEs in China. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.