Work life balance on Wall Street in the wake of job losses

October saw another 16,000 jobs in New York City's securities industry eaten up in the economic meltdown. It pushes the total work force down to numbers we haven't seen since 2005,  according to labor analyst James Brown, who spoke with Reuters Thursday.

It's more fodder for the mislead mindset, that work life balance and flexibility are expendable in a time of company cutbacks. Quite the contrary according to work life experts, and those still alive on Wall Street.

At a recent Wharton Women in Business Conference, a panel of Wall Street executives made some significant conclusions in their discussion, according to the article on Wharton's on-line site:

• Work Life Balance means different things to different people
• It's hard for a first year associate to strike a balance
• Achieving balance is possible over time
• It's best to work for an organization which already engages in work life flexibility practices
• A consistently good performance gives you leverage toward controlling your work life scenario
• Achieving work life balance can help further one's ability to stick around for the long haul

The item that I believe to be most important is that work life balance or flexibility is a very personal thing. Unfortunately, the voice of the employee is often quelled as we're all expected to do more with less and to relinquish all complaining. No one wants to be next on the chopping block.

The merging of the working and living experience is inevitable, especially in an economy which is challenging at best. Those who are not putting in extra hours to impress the boss are likely holding down another job on the side.

Companies are just starting to take work life concerns seriously, but for the financial industry which is hell bent on long hours and competition in a 24/7 global marketplace, it's an uphill battle for an individual to make demands. But for companies interested in retaining employees, fostering innovation and boosting productivity – the managing of the work life culture within corporate America  – is likely to be the wave of the future.