This study identifies a mechanism for flexible working arrangements at a small not-for-profit organization, using a combination of ethnographic research and data collected from the organization in 2005 and 2007. From the perspective of human capital theory, the article examines a causality between maternity leave and specific skills, by ascertaining whether the employee’s career follows the theory in terms of training investment, premium, return, age and income gain. Results suggest that applying this long-standing theory to analysing the interests of both employee and employer in relation to maternity leave will provide a fresh outlook on how female labour is viewed as a human resource.
Bacon N., Hoque K. ( 2005) HRM in the SME sector: Valuable employees and coercive networks. International Journal of Human Resource Management16(11): 1976- 1999.
2.
Barringer MW, Milkovich GT ( 1998) A theoretical exploration of the adoption and design of flexible benefit plans: A case of human resource innovation. Academy of Management Review23(2): 305- 324.
3.
Becker G. ( 1964) Human Capital, A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education. New York: Columbia University Press.
4.
Blair-Loy M., Wharton AS ( 2002) Employees’ use of work-family policies and the workplace social context. Social Forces80(3): 813-845.
5.
Blau FD, Ehrenberg RG (eds) (1997) Gender and Family Issues in the Workplace. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
6.
Cunningham I. ( 2001) Guest editorial: Why research the voluntary sector?Employee Relations23(3): 223-225.
7.
Dex S., Scheibl F. ( 2001) Flexible and family-friendly working arrangements in UK-based SMEs: Business cases. British Journal of Industrial Relations39(3): 411-431.
8.
Dex S., Scheibl F. ( 2002) SMEs and Flexible Working Arrangements. Bristol: The Policy Press/ Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
9.
Dex S., Smith C. ( 2002) The Nature and Pattern of Family-Friendly Employment Policies in Britain. Bristol: The Policy Press/Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
10.
Hashiguchi M.(2009) A case study of a ‘learning organisation’ in the voluntary sector. International Public Policy Studies ( Osaka University) 13(2): 95-111.
11.
Hogarth T., Hasluck C., Pierre G., et al. (2001) Work-life balance 2000: Results from the baseline study. Research Report 249, Department for Education and Employment, London.
12.
Holt H., Thaulow I. ( 1996) Formal and informal flexibility in the workplace. In: Lewis S, Lewis J (eds) The Work-Family Challenge: Rethinking Employment . London: Sage, 79-92.
13.
Kendall J., Knapp M (1996) The Voluntary Sector in the UK. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1-27.
14.
Lazear E. ( 2003) Firm-specific human capital: A skill-weights approach. Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) Discussion Paper 813.
15.
Lewis J., Campbell M. ( 2007) UK work/family balance policies and gender equality, 1997-2005. Social Politics: International Studies in Gender, State and Society14(1): 4-30.
16.
Lewis S, Lewis J (eds) (1996) The Work-Family Challenge: Rethinking Employment. London: Sage.
17.
Maxwell GA, McDougall M. ( 2004) Work-life balance: Exploring the connections between levels of influence in the UK public sector. Public Management Review6(3): 377-393.
18.
Neal D. ( 1995) Industry-specific human capital: Evidence from displaced workers. Journal of Labor Economics13(4): 653-677.
19.
Reichardt O., Kane D., and Wilding K. ( 2007) The UK Voluntary Sector Almanac: The State of the Sector 2007. London: NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organizations).
20.
Secret M., Sprang G., Romph EL, et al. (2000) A community-based study of family-friendly work-places. Journal of Community Practice8(1): 1-20.
21.
Senge P. ( 1990) The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York: Doubleday/Currency .
22.
Shaw K. ( 1984) A formulation of the earnings function using the concept of occupational investment. Journal of Human Resources19(3): 319-340.
23.
Sweet S., Moen P. ( 2006) Advancing a career focus on work and family: Insights from the life course perspective. In: Pitt-Catsouphes M, Kossek E, and Sweet S (eds) The Work and Family Handbook: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives, Methods, and Approaches. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 189-208.
24.
Waldfogel J. ( 1998) Understanding the ‘family gap’ in pay for women with children. The Journal of Economic Perspectives12(1): 137-156.
25.
Yin R. ( 2003) Case Study Research: Design and Methods, Applied Social Research Methods Series 5, 3rd edn. Thousand Oaks. CA: Sage.
