The Family and Work Institute identified a number of characteristics of employers most closely associated with supportive work-family programs and policies. The following are the top five predictors.
* Industry is the most frequent predictor of work-life support. Finance, insurance, and real estate services had the most supportive policies.
* Company size is the second most frequent predictor of work-life assistance and a supportive work environment. Larger employers (1,000 or more) are more likely to provide flexible work options, longer maternity leaves, paternity leaves, leaves for adoptive parents, and wage replacement during maternity leaves. Larger companies are more likely to provide elder care programs, employee assistance programs, and health care and wellness programs.
* The proportion of top executive positions filled by women is the third most frequent predictor. A company which has a larger proportion of top executive positions filled by women is associated with work-family programs. For example, 82% of companies with women in half or more of their top executive positions provide traditional flextime, compared with 56% of companies with no women in top positions. Six times as many companies with women in half or more of their top executive positions provide on- or near-site child care.
* The proportion of top executive positions filled by minorities (African-Americans and Hispanics) is an equally important predictor of work-family programs. Since the majority of companies have no top positions filled by minorities, the presence of even one or a few in top positions can have an impact. For example, more than 80% of companies with minorities in 25% or more of top executive positions offer traditional flextime versus 64% of companies with no minorities in key positions.
* The percentage of women in a company's workforce.is also predictive of work-family assistance. When women are a larger proportion of the workforce, employers are more likely to provide a number of options such as job sharing, part-time work, longer maternity leaves, direct subsidies for childcare and care for children during school vacations.
See Figure 12, on the next page for the types and prevalence of work-family programs among the 188 companies surveyed.6
Employee Education for Mental Health Promotion and Mental Illness Prevention
Historically, the typical worksite health promotion program overlooked mental health needs. Fortunately this is changing. A 1992 survey indicated that 81% of all worksites with 50 or more employees have health promotion activities. The most frequently offered activities are injury prevention, exercise, smoking cessation, stress management, and alcohol and drug rehabilitation. In 1992, 25% of worksites offered programs on mental health, compared with 15% in 1985.7 Employers are investing more and more in programs to educate employees and their families about mental health problems. Taking into account U.S. regional differences, today, approximately 40% to 60% of worksites with 50 or more employees offer some type of mental health program. This is particularly true if stress man- 
