Work-Life Balance, Organizational Support, and Career Aspirations among Female Public Sector Employees: A Literature-Based Study

Abstract

Women’s career advancement in the public sector is often discussed through the lens of representation, meritocracy, and leadership opportunity. However, less attention has been given to how female employees themselves evaluate career development within the everyday realities of work-life balance, organizational support, family responsibilities, and mobility requirements. This study examines how work-life balance and perceived organizational support shape career aspirations among female public sector employees in Indonesia. Using a literature-based qualitative design, the study integrates insights from public administration, human resource management, organizational behavior, and gender studies. It is supported by exploratory survey data from 1,300 female employees in an anonymized Indonesian public sector organization and publicly available secondary data. The survey shows that 565 respondents, or 43.5%, expressed interest in career development, while 735 respondents, or 56.5%, did not currently express such interest. Thematic coding of 563 usable open-ended responses further identifies key expected supports, including career and competency development, family-sensitive placement and mobility policy, childcare and family support, supervisor support and mentoring, adequate facilities, flexible work arrangements, fairness, and wellbeing support. The findings suggest that women’s career aspiration is not absent, but conditional, contextual, and ecosystem-dependent. Career advancement is evaluated not only as an individual achievement, but also as a decision shaped by organizational risks, family compatibility, supervisory support, and perceived fairness. This study contributes by integrating literature-based analysis with exploratory empirical evidence and argues that public sector organizations should move beyond formal equality toward a gender-responsive work ecosystem that enables sustainable career participation and advancement for female employees.

Keywords: work-life balance, organizational support, career aspiration, female employees, public sector, gender-responsive work ecosystem.