A Resource Pathway to Action Against Discrimination: How Burnout and Work-Family Balance Form Obstacles to Action

Perceived Workplace Discrimination on the Basis of Parent Status in Australia: Who Is Vulnerable and How Does It Link to Mothers' and Fathers' Mental Health?

OBJECTIVE

This study focused on employees' perceived discrimination due to parenthood; and mental health, occupational stress and turnover intention. Methods: Survey (2016) of an Australian convenience sample of employed parents: women ( n = 2950) and men ( n = 1318). Results: Forty-two percent of all mothers reported missing out on promotion ( n = 1234/2950); one-third reported negative comments from managers ( n = 805/2950, 27%) or colleagues ( n = 832/2950, 28%). One in five fathers reported these forms of discrimination. In adjusted analyses, perceived discrimination was associated with poorer mental health (β = 0.23, P < 0.001); higher occupational stress (β = 0.30, P < 0.001); and increased odds of turnover intention (adjusted odds ratio = 1.5, P < 0.001) for mothers; and poorer mental health (β = 0.34, P < 0.001); stress (β = 0.35, P < 0.001); and increased odds of turnover intention (adjusted odds ratio = 1.7, P < 0.001) for fathers. Conclusions: Experiences of negativity and hostility at work are common and link to employee health and well-being.

The Relationship Between Perceived Discrimination and School/Work–Family Conflict Among Graduate Student-Parents

Work–family conflict (WFC) is commonly experienced by individuals who have roles in both the work and family domains including graduate students with children and/or dependents. Graduate student-parents have the additional strain of school, which can contribute to school–family conflict (SFC) as well. The purpose of this study was to examine whether burnout mediates the deleterious effects of parent-based discrimination on work- and family-related outcomes. We used a mediation modeling design to test whether the distal effects of such bias occur due to increased levels of burnout. Results indicated that burnout mediated the relationship between perceived discrimination and SFC and WFC. The control variables of gender, number of children, year in academic program, and residency status did not significantly predict burnout, SFC, or WFC. Practical and clinical implications are discussed in addition to suggestions for future research.