The Effects of Work Life Balance on Employee Retention in the Case of Unilever Ethiopia Head Office Employees
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Date
2025-01-11
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A.A.U
Abstract
The purpose of this study was examine the effects of work life balance on employee retention
in the case of Unilever Ethiopia head office employees. The study employed a mixed
approach that used numerical and non-numerical data. The study has applied cross-sectional
survey design. A target population of the Unilever Ethiopia; Hence, this study focuses on the
employees at the headquarters, comprising a total of 150 employees. The population of this
study was the employees who are working at Unilever Ethiopia. The research used census
approach because the population number was below 200. The researcher received responses
from 136 respondents while 14 respondents were not willing, also, purposeful sampling
technique was employed to interview the key informant interviews. Collected questionnaires’
data was analyzed by using SPSS 26. Descriptive and inferential analysis methods were
applied on the side of quantitative method while thematic analysis was approached. The data
reliability was measured by Cronbach alpha, which resulted at 0.984, which shows the data
was highly reliable. The overall findings of the study was Unilever Ethiopia employees face
moderate challenges in achieving work-life balance, with issues such as high workloads,
limited flexibility in work arrangements, and difficulties disconnecting from work,
highlighting the need for improved policies to foster employee well-being, satisfaction, and
retention. Work overload and Work-Related Stress had significant positive correlation
(r=0.840), whereby higher levels of workloads are highly related to higher levels of workrelated
stress (p<0.001). the correlation between Work overload and Flexible Work
Arrangements was medium positive (r = 0.643, p <0.01) It implies that the higher the
employee’s perception of workloads the higher their perception of the need for better flexible
work arrangements. Family Role Overload receives a very strong positive correlation
coefficient of 0.921r = 0.921, p<0.01p thus summarizing that flexible work arrangements
increase family role overload has a positive relationship. The One-Sample t-test results
underscore the critical importance of employee retention while highlighting the need for
targeted interventions to address work overload, work-related stress, and family role
overload through enhanced work-life balance and stress management policies. To enhance
employee retention and morale, Unilever Ethiopia should focus on addressing work-life
balance challenges, improving job satisfaction, and fostering a supportive work environment
while maintaining strengths in training, benefits, and flexible work arrangements.
Key Word: Work Overload, Work Related Stress, Work Arrangement, Family Role
Overload and Employee Retention