This chapter describes the growth of contingent research faculty and postdoctoral appointments at research universities and research-intensive institutions. Literature that addresses the employment and professional environment of these workers is critically explored and a discussion of the implications for academic leaders and institutional…

According to a recent study of how women manage maternity in the workplace, more than 70% of pregnant employees were still employed at the same job 6 months after childbirth (compared to 80% of young women who had not been pregnant). A study of 324 randomly selected employed women in the Midwest yielded similar results. Six months after giving…

Examines the reasons for part-time work and characteristics of part-time workers, legislative protection, national incentives to increase access to part-time jobs, and forms of part-time work. Explores arguments for and against part-time employment. (SK)

Although conventional wisdom indicates that temporary workers are becoming the norm and full-time workers are becoming an anachronism, statistics do not bear this position out. The truth includes the following facts: (1) companies are using more temporary workers, but these new employment arrangements provide new entry points into the labor market…

This article describes the Japanese quota system for the employment of people with disabilities and assesses the potential of a quota law that includes financial incentives for compliance. It concludes that laws to compel the employment of people with disabilities are unlikely to be effective and may be counterproductive. (Author/DB)

Contingent workers are those employed in jobs that do not fit the traditional description of a full-time, permanent job with benefits. Contingent work takes the form of part-time, temporary, and contract employment. The number of contingent workers in 1988 has been estimated at between 29.9 and 36.6 million, representing 25-30 percent of the…

Although the general perception in the United States may be that downsizing in companies is pervasive and increasing, the facts show a slowing of the trend in downsizing and a net gain in employment. Many workers have found new jobs at or near their former pay rates, although only half of older workers are able to find jobs comparable to the ones…

This paper identifies some recent dimensions of labor market restructuring, based on an analysis of change in the United States economy. Information was drawn from a number of service industries, including retailing, telecommunications, insurance, banking, advertising, accounting, and other business services. Following an introduction that defines…

This volume contains 12 papers commissioned by the Panel on Technology and Women's Employment. "Technology, Women, and Work: Policy Perspectives" (Eli Ginzberg) is an overview that provides a context for the volume. The four case studies in Part II describe the impact of information technology in the insurance industry, among bookkeepers, among…

Representation of Chicanos and Latinos in the United States' professoriate is lowest of all racial and ethnic groups when their proportion in the general population is considered. Restriction to limited roles and devaluation of their academic and community contributions maintains this pattern, compounded by institutions' unwillingness to examine…

Several factors influence learning as it occurs in the workplace and in other settings where learning is undertaken for the expressed purpose of acquiring or improving competencies that will be used in the workplace. Over the past decade, the nature of the workplace has changed, and workers must continually strive to learn in order to keep up with…

Older women, who comprise two-thirds of the retired U.S. population, share substantially less of the $1.3 trillion worth of over 800,000 private and public pension plans by every way of measurement. Of the one-in-five women receiving pension income, some obtain it from their own paid work history, while others are widows and divorced women who…

In the Federal Republic of Germany, as elsewhere, the recent unemployment crisis has forced politicians, economists, trade unionists, and experts to consider a number of courses of action designed to reduce working time. Included among these alternatives are the following: adopting the 35-hour work week, shortening working life through early…

Research was conducted in Europe to determine the current situation in the health industry with regard to transparency, recognition, and transfer of qualifications. The study identified current and needed patterns of mobility, European policy assisting mobility, and attitudes and practices of institutions and businesses. Data were gathered through…

This information paper explores the need for age-neutral functional criteria in the human resources management system and the need for managers to review currently accepted employment policies. Population patterns, labor force profiles, and labor force projections are reviewed. The paper examines the effect of retirement policies and considers…