Working Dads Agree: Being a Parent is the Toughest Job

MELVILLE, N.Y., June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The latest Adecco USA Workplace Insights survey commissioned in celebration of Father's Day found that working fathers have a lot in common with working mothers when it comes to managing work/life priorities. Not only do the majority of working moms (71%) and dads (64%) agree that managing their family lives is more challenging than their careers, more than half (55%) of all working fathers think companies should do more to help them achieve a better work/life balance. This shift in priorities reflects the reality that today's dads are more equally sharing the family responsibilities with moms, with the most recent U.S. Census Bureau survey confirming this shift with the number of stay at home dads increasing by almost 50% over the past decade.

How do working parents' responses stack up to their co-workers? Other key findings of the survey include:

                                           FATHERS    MOTHERS    NON-PARENTS
    Say It's More Challenging To Manage
    My Family Life Than My Career            64%        71%          N/A

    Think Companies Should Do More
    To Help Achieve Work/Life Balance        55%        49%          51%

    Very Likely/Likely To Work Late Or
    Respond To E-mails After Hours           50%        43%          45%

    Think Becoming A Parent Has Impacted
    My Career Path                           45%        41%          N/A

    Think They Have Same Level Of Access
    To Work/Life Benefits As Colleagues      70%        60%          44%

"The perception that the work/life balancing act is mainly a female struggle no longer holds up in today's workplace," says Rich Thompson, Vice President of Training & Development for Adecco Group North America. "As moms and dads continue to more equally share responsibilities both at home and at the office, employers need to be mindful of this and ensure that they offer work/life benefits that are inclusive of both groups. As a father, I can say firsthand that becoming a parent can enhance one's life in a variety of ways, and career is certainly one of them if you can find the right dose of work and family balance."

Working parents have many qualities Adecco sees as valuable to the workplace:

    -- Masters of multitasking:  Helping with homework, shuttling to practices
       and lessons, getting dinner on the table all while keeping peace in the
       household - balancing all of these priorities is a constant juggling
       act.  Being a parent is sure to test even the best multitasker as
       effectively prioritizing is a necessity for moms and dads - a skill
       that's just as important and crucial to success in the workplace.

    -- Strengthened relationship skills:  Being a parent exposes and depends
       on a slew of soft skills including effective interpersonal
       communication, negotiation, compassion and understanding.  These same
       skills are crucially important to being both a successful leader and
       team player at the office, enabling parents to hone in and sharpen
       these skills to best navigate both of their domains.

    -- Promoters of work/life balance:  Effectively balancing both work and
       life is a challenge for all workers, but can be especially daunting for
       parents as they're constantly being pulled in multiple directions.  As
       parents face this struggle firsthand, they are often the biggest
       champions sponsoring access to work/life benefits for workers of all
       backgrounds, helping to keep balance a top priority at corporations.

For a complete copy of the Adecco Parents in the Workplace survey results please contact Anthony Guerrieri at anthony.guerrieri@adeccona.com.

Survey Methodology:

This Parents in the Workplace survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Adecco between April 21 and April 23, 2008 among 2,138 adults ages 18+, of whom, 1,262 are employed full-time and/or part-time ("workers"), 645 are workers who are not parents or legal guardians of any children ("non-parents"), 352 are female workers who are parents or legal guardians ("working mothers/moms") and 256 are male workers who are parents or legal guardians ("working fathers/dads"). This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Anthony Guerrieri.

ADECCO WORLDWIDE:

Adecco S.A. is a Global Fortune 500 company and the world leader in workforce solutions. The Adecco Group network connects over 700,000 associates with business clients each day through its network of over 33,000 employees and 6,600 offices in over 70 countries and territories around the world. Registered in Switzerland, and managed by a multinational team with expertise in markets spanning the globe, the Adecco Group delivers an unparalleled range of flexible staffing and career resources to corporate clients and qualified associates.

ADECCO NORTH AMERICA:

Adecco is the workforce solutions leader in the United States and Canada, with a comprehensive service offering that includes temporary and contract staffing, permanent recruitment, outplacement and career services, recruitment process outsourcing, training and consulting.

In addition to its administrative, clerical and light industrial staffing services, Adecco operates the following specialty divisions:

    -- Engineering & Technical
    -- Finance & Accounting
    -- Information Technology
    -- Medical & Science
    -- Legal
    -- Human Capital Solutions
    -- Government Solutions
    -- Transportation

Adecco S.A. is registered in Switzerland (ISIN: CH001213860) and listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange with trading on virt-x SWX: ADEN and Euronext Paris - Premier Marche Euronext: ADE.

Additional information is available at the company's website at www.adeccousa.com.

HARRIS INTERACTIVE:

Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.