In the physically and emotionally demanding retail world, particularly on the shop floor, being treated with care and consideration by your employer can make all the difference.
One brand-name retailer, with eight outlets in Hong Kong, puts work-life balance and employee wellness high on its list of priorities.
Marks & Spencer (Asia-Pacific) head of human resources, Sandra Asnani, said employees' health and happiness formed a key part of the company's business strategy.
'This is because we need a healthy, efficient, effective and stable workforce to deliver our five core values - quality, value, service, innovation and trust,' said Ms Asnani, who was also a speaker at this week's 2007 Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management Annual Conference. Marks & Spencer's work-life balance strategy includes a five-day working week on a rota basis, with a Saturday and Sunday and two consecutive days off each month. It also has an employee wellness programme which operates counselling services and small group workshops, and a hotline.
'We help people handle stress, but we also run workshops on parenting and other smaller workshops which are not work-related, such as how to get into a better relationship with the opposite sex,' Ms Asnani explained.
This approach has particular relevance in Hong Kong, given the long working hours and equally long working week in the retail industry.
'It's an industry with an irregular working pattern, which makes it really difficult to fit in a normal social and family life,' she said. 'In Hong Kong, a six-day working week is common in retail - it's not easy and it's not a must that people get a day off on weekends or public holidays, as that's the busiest time.'
