Discusses part-time employment relative to opportunities for adults to learn throughout their lifetime. (JOW)

Presents a typology of modifications to the standard work week, reviews the current state of research-based knowledge regarding the effectiveness of each major type of alternative, and presents implementation suggestions for personnel interested in adopting one or more of the alternative forms. (Author/IRT)

Describes a German experiment whereby fulltime employees can work fewer hours without losing status and parttime employees have more options on allocations of working hours. The process ensures that management can count on enough staff for peak periods and more easily plan ahead. (JOW)

Arranging work time in new and flexible ways has been a topic of growing interest for the past ten years. This handbook for employers explains one way in which jobs can be made more flexible--job sharing. It discusses ways that work hours can be shared with potential benefits for employer and employees. Topics discussed include definition of job…

Both the proportion and characteristics of workers in four alternative employment arrangements in February 1997 were little different from two years earlier. The groups--temporary-help-agency workers, contract company workers, workers who are on call, and independent contractors--continue to be highly diverse. (Author/JOW)

Flexible work schedules have more than doubled since 1985, but workers sometimes must be willing to increase their hours, work evening shifts, or switch to part-time status, self-employment, or certain occupations to get flexibility. Flexibility was less likely for nonwhite, female, unmarried, and less-educated workers. (Contains 38 notes and…

The term "alternative work schedules" encompasses any variation of the requirement that all permanent employees in an organization or one shift of employees adhere to the same five-day, seven-to-eight-hour schedule. This article defines staggered hours, flexible working hours (flexitour and gliding time), compressed work week, the task system, and…

More employees are choosing to work part time. Although this trend started because of working women, some men are choosing part-time positions. Part-time employees forfeit salary and promotion potential, yet most feel the trade is fair and that they are more productive during their working hours. (CH)

A study of 78 women professionals/managers working reduced hours for family or personal reasons showed that less successful arrangements were associated with lack of upward mobility, underemployment, pressure to work full time, and difficult relations with co-workers. Career development was a concern for those in both more and less successful…

Alternative work schedules can help parents of young children. They are also attractive to students, older workers, handicapped persons, couples desiring to share work and home responsibilities, persons wishing to upgrade skills or switch careers through a return to school, and employers needing to serve the public outside the traditional workday,…

Over the last decade, part-time employment of adult women has grown twice as fast as full-time employment. The most rapid gains in labor force participation rates of women have occurred among wives under 35, and especially among those with children under 6. At the other end of the age range, part-time employment is also a very desirable option.…

Explores three forms of alternative work schedules that research has shown improve job performance and decrease absenteeism: flextime (starting and stopping times vary within limits); permanent part-time employment (regular employment carried out during shorter working hours); and job sharing (two or more part-time employees share one full-time…

Taking the view that job sharing is a positive alternative for workers and employers, this article defines job sharing in broad terms and describes its evolution from the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to the present. The advantages, such as increased productivity, are felt to be impressive, but disadvantages also exist, including significant…

European experiments in alternative work patterns offer much practical experience. Their development, rationale, problems, and some of their consequences are discussed. (LBH)

The authors state that flexible scheduling of work will become more common as employers attempt to deal with changes in the labor supply. Types of flexibility and potential benefits are described. The authors present the steps in developing and implementing a flexible workplace plan. (CH)