Discusses the growing use of temporary employees by companies, including the reasons that temporary help is popular. Describes the types of people likely to become temporary employees and reports results from a survey of 144 members of the American Society for Personnel Administration regarding their organizations' use of temporary employees. (CH)

Notes six phenomena occurring in today's offices that will necessitate the office of the future. Describes the office of the future and outlines its characteristics and characteristics needed by future office employees. (SH)

The "spirituality in the workplace" movement serves a range of interests, including personal fulfillment on the job, a growing need to reconcile personal values with those of the corporation, and corporate desires to help individuals achieve more balanced lives. In addition to being the theme at a growing number of conferences, spirituality has…

Organizations are being urged to become "high performance work organizations" (HPWOs) and vocational teachers have begun considering how best to prepare workers for them. Little consensus exists as to what HPWOs are. Several common characteristics of HPWOs have been identified, and two distinct models of HPWOs are emerging in the United…

Evidence from academic research and management experts in the United Kingdom and elsewhere confirms that the recent focus in work organizations on cost reductions through downsizing has changed the roles and structures of many human resources (HR) units. HR units have had to prove their contribution to the organization's bottom line, raise their…

The current status of diversity initiatives in eight U.S.-based multinational corporations was examined through a process involving semistructured interviews of diversity managers and analysis of their annual reports for fiscal 1996 and related documents. The 8 corporations were randomly selected from the 30 multinational corporations in Illinois.…

The U.S. economy, workplace, and work are in the midst of historic change. New ways of organizing and managing the workplace and new ways of working are becoming increasingly common. Large companies are giving way to smaller and leaner organizations. Today, the typical business establishment employs 15 people. Across all industries, smaller…

This congressional report contains testimony given at the first of a series of comprehensive hearings on the impact of automation on employment and the workplace. Included among those agencies and organizations represented at the hearing were the following: the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers; the American Federation…

Leading-edge firms (LEFs)--at the forefront of their industry in terms of growth or market share--may influence skill development through diffusion of technology, products, or practices and use of market power to set standards or change customer businesses. Study of LEFs can identify the type and mix of skills needed in the industry. LEFs are…

This book consists of the personal narratives of 14 women who discussed their experiences as construction workers in interviews that were conducted between November 1991 and April 1994. The information provided by the women is organized thematically, beginning with their decision to enter the construction industry. Special attention is paid to the…

U.S. workers' views on discrimination and race on the job were examined in a telephone survey of 1,470 adults across the 48 contiguous United States that yielded 1,005 complete interviews. White workers were far more likely than workers of other races to believe that everyone is treated fairly at work. Race was a more powerful indicator of opinion…

This book contains nine papers that were presented to the Sociology and Social Policy section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. The first paper, "Introduction: Work and Employment in the 1990s" (Richard Brown), puts work and employment in a historical context and examines how globalization of the economy has…

This book, which is intended for workers, parents, and managers, presents 12 new rules for success in today's radically changed workplace and explains how workers can position themselves to thrive in it. The titles and topics of the book's 11 chapters are as follows: "The New Landscape" (economic and social realities of today's workplace); "Facing…

The effects of three types of work-life conflict in Canada were examined by using data from a set of work and family studies that were conducted in 1991 and 2001. The studies focused on the effects of the following types of conflict: (1) work overload; (2) work-to-family interference (where work gets in the way of family); and (3) family-to-work…

Training in the motor vehicle repair and sales sector in the Netherlands was examined in a study that included the following approaches: review of the sector's structure/characteristics, institutional and social context, employment practices, changing conditions, and available education and training; in-depth case studies of four auto repair shops…