Work-life Balance of Women Entrepreneurs of District Sheikhupura

Abstract

The current research was conducted to understand the dynamics of work-life balance of female entrepreneurs in Sheikhupura. Entrepreneurship is the choice of many people as the way to acquire more flexibility and independence in managing their family and business roles. Within the patriarchal environment of Pakistan, however, the burden of domestic responsibilities and conservative cultural practices exacerbate work-life balance issues of women entrepreneurs. In this qualitative research, data was collected through in-depth interviews. Sample was purposively selected from married and divorced women entrepreneurs who had run their business between one to twelve years and had children. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that women entrepreneurs were always able to juggle between their jobs and family despite the challenges they encountered such as discrimination, harassment, fraud, and normal gender role expectations. However, these barriers did not stop the participants because they adopted self-care practices and tapped on the support systems. It is recommended that the policy makers must establish local support centers where they offer financial and psychological counseling as well as gender friendly policies. Also, institutional support is needed to ensure fair conditions for female entrepreneurs.