KMID : 1141220130040030166
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Safety and Health at Work 2013 Volume.4 No. 3 p.166 ~ p.176
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A Training Intervention for Supervisors to Support a Work-Life Policy Implementation
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Laharnar Naima
Glass Nancy Perrin Nancy Hanson Ginger Anger W. Kent
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Abstract
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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.
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KEYWORD
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benefit, evaluation, intervention, training, policy
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