g flexible options such as job sharing, variable work schedules, and part-time positions that were a direct response to worker needs. Marni Ezra and Melissa Deckman (1996, March/April) make this contention:
Satisfaction with work/family balance is a vital component of an employee's job satisfaction, and the use of policies such as on-site child care and flextime appear to help employees, particularly mothers, face the dual demands of work and family life better (p. 174).
At the same time, more businesses began to recognize the economic benefits of offering flexible work options, especially in terms of hiring and retaining qualified employees. Some employers turned to flexible work plans first as a way of servicing customers in different time zones or meeting seasonal demands of the business. As flexibility has become more accepted throughout corporate America, especially among larger companies, employers have been able to pinpoint specific economic benefits attributable to these programs. For instance, Aetna Life and Casualty estimates that it saves at least $2
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