...Flexible employees’ working hours and workplace become a trend for the past 10 years. Statistical data provided by Berger proved that flexible working hours encourages employees to work more productively, thus, the traditional working schedule is gradually replaced by flexible working schedule. Berger believes that it is essential for companies to manage people independently, otherwise, companies may have potential recruitment and retention problem especially for younger staff. In addition, as technology develops over time, employees prefer virtual office rather than the physical office since it helps them to work more efficiently. The unlimited workplace also ease the pressure of companies. Compared with past 10 years, people become more self-motivated, and self-employed is also increasing rapidly. Therefore, entrepreneurs need more support to help them achieve success in challenging entrepreneurship. General speaking, people become more productive as the changes in the workplace. I only analyze the flexible working hours and location here. The characteristic of flexible working hours is that the employers arrange their employees’ work schedule based on employees’ best satisfaction in terms of employees’ lifestyle and family status. Christensen believed that flexible working hours provided a balance between employees’ work and personal life, which indirectly increase employees’ productivity and reduce absenteeism as well (Christensen, 2013). Instead of traditional working...
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...report May 2012 Flexible working provision and uptake Contents Summary of key findings Flexible working provision – employers’ policies and practices Formal/informal flexible working arrangements Flexible working and the law Right to request flexible working Flexible working regulations and tribunal claims Access to and uptake of flexible working among employees Employee perceptions of the flexible working arrangements provided by employers Uptake of flexible working Flexible working uptake, by size of organisation worked for Flexible working uptake, by seniority of employees Employees that would like to work flexibly if given the opportunity Benefits of flexible working Benefits of flexible working: employees Satisfaction with work–life balance and employee engagement Satisfaction with work–life balance support Barriers to introducing flexible working Flexible working trends Background to the report Conclusions 2 4 7 9 10 14 15 15 16 18 18 18 21 22 24 25 27 30 33 34 Flexible working provision and uptake 1 Summary of key findings Background to the survey This report is based on survey responses from more than 1,000 employers and 2,000 employees. The employer survey is weighted to be representative of industry in the UK in relation to size, sector and type of business. The employee survey is weighted to be representative of the UK workforce in relation to sector and size (private, public, voluntary), industry type and full-time/part-time working by gender. Both...
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...1 In this report the managing director is considering putting flexible hours in place, in all head departments. Reasonable research was done, firstly they received some feedback from other companies that have those hours in place, then working out what everybody’s work schedule and hours would be, also to see if credit banking and hours recorded would work out. Most managers were keen to get the new hours up and running, they thought this would improve the working motivation around staff members. It was discussed that if timetables, training and consultations were to begin then flexible working hours could be successful. 2 The main purpose of this report is to persuade the working party to allow flexible hours to be introduced into all head departments, this was considered by many managers as a benefit to the company for eg ‘’Most departmental managers were in favour of introducing a flexible working hour system, anticipating an improvement in both productivity and staff morale’’. Investigations were followed out to find out if it would affect things in the working environment with staff members for example ‘’over 35% of female staff are mothers with children of school age and would probably welcome the opportunity to fit their work around family responsibilities and according to seasonal daylight hours’’ This means that this would make the company more family orientated which is more appealing to current or new employees. The secondary purpose of this report is to inform...
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...Summary……………………………………………………………………… 1 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………….. 2 Options for flexible scheduling Part-time……………………………………………………………………………3 Examples Flextime…………………………………………………………………………….3 Examples Job sharing……………………………………………………………………….. 4 Examples Working from home or satellite location………………………………………..4 Advantages……………………………………………………………………………….. 4-5 Disadvantages……………………………………………………………………………. 5-6 Solution/Conclusion……………………………………………………………………… 6-7 References………………………………………………………………………………... 8 Executive Summary The purpose of this proposal is to promote flexible scheduling in the workplace. Flexible scheduling means that employees are allowed to work at times that are more convenient to them. The challenge of balancing many responsibilities can cause employees to have trouble focusing, they can feel tired, and distracted. This in turn affects profitability by reducing productivity and performance. Flexible scheduling can assist both men and women balance work and personal obligations. In today’s society, the need for more flexibility has never been greater. Employees who find their lives enjoyable and fulfilling because they’re able to balance all obligations will be hardworking, loyal, and productive. Described in this document are four options for flexible scheduling as well as the pros and cons of flexible scheduling. Conflicts between home and work can create work-related stress. There is a great...
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...the relationship between commitment and high performance is (or, perhaps, was - given the age of this material) difficult to establish. It also employs a 'flow' approach, seeing strategy underpinning practice, leading to a variety of desired outcomes. Like its American predecessors, this UK model is unitarist (tying employee behavior and commitment into the goals of strategic management) and lukewarm on the value of trade unions. The employee relationship is viewed as one between the individual and the organization. P1.2 Compare the differences between Storey’s definitions of HRM, personnel and IR practices: Storey defines HRM as a strategic and coherent approach to the management of an organization’s most valued assets-the people working there who individually and collectively contribute to the achievement of its objectives. Storey also distinguished between hard and soft forms of HRM: * HARD HRM: It emphasises the need to manage people in ways that will obtain added value from them and thus achieve competitive advantage. Thus it concentrates on quantitative, measurable criteria, control and performance management. * SOFT HRM: The soft model of HRM is based upon human...
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...WORK & FAMILY PROGRAM POLICY PROPOSAL WIN-WIN FLEXIBILITY By Karen Kornbluh* Introduction Today fully 70 percent of families with children are headed by two working parents or by an unmarried working parent. The “traditional family” of the breadwinner and homemaker has been replaced by the “juggler family,” in which no one is home fulltime. Two-parent families are working 10 more hours a week than in 1979.1 To be decent parents, caregivers, and members of their communities, workers now need greater flexibility than they once did. Yet good part-time or flex-time jobs remain rare. Whereas companies have embraced flexibility in virtually every other aspect of their businesses (inventory control, production schedules, financing), full-time workers’ schedules remain largely inflexible. Employers often demand workers be available around the clock. Moreover, many employees have no right to a minimum number of sick or vacation days; almost two thirds of all workers – and an even larger percentage of low-income parents – lack the ability to take a day off to care for a family member.2 The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 finally guaranteed that workers at large companies could take a leave of absence for the birth or adoption of a baby, or for the illness of a family member. Yet that guaranteed leave is unpaid. Many businesses are finding ways to give their most valued employees flexibility but, all too often, workers who need flexibility find themselves shunted into part-time...
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...Motivation Methods This paper will provide a brief introduction to motivation methods and what type of impacting it will have on the staff. Motivation methods can be helpful in motivating employees in doing his or her best. Therefore, managers need to come up with different types of incentives, which will benefit employees as well, as the employers. Productivity plays an important part for managers because he or she will have a long-term success within the department. A good incentive helps staff to focus more on his or her job and become loyal to the company. Managers can encourage his or her staffs to do better and be motivated. People look forward to incentives because it gives him or her something to focus on. Motivation methods makes the staff feel appreciated for his or her time at work. When company has good incentives it helps keep a good reputation in the business world. One good motivational method, which managers can use, would be goal-setting theory. Using goal-setting can help motivate employees in many ways. However, goal-setting need to be used in a proper way, in order for it to be well managed. Making sure employees achieve his or her goal would be up to the manager, and team leaders. Managers and team leaders need to make sure that all employees obtain the proper direction. Making sure the job description most often discussed between the supervisors, subordinate, and employees; this should be done in a meeting just to receive clarification. Goal-setting helps...
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...operates professionally and effectively. The healthcare manager does not solely run the department alone. The manager’s subordinates are the backbone of any organization. The managers are responsible for motivating staff to perform job duties with minimum dysfunctions. Motivating staff is an important factor in improving job performance, keeping employee morale high, and maintaining an effective working environment. Management should adopt motivational methods that will encourage the staff to perform duties at the highest of expectations. The healthcare field is an extremely stressful and highly demanding field. Management should implement motivational methods, including incentive programs, alternative working arrangements, and clear polices regarding to rules and regulations. In an organization, employees share a common working environment; however, the goals, personal responsibilities, and lifestyles, of each employee differ from one to the next. Health care managers should communicate with employees individually and as a group in an attempt to understand the importance of working at their maximum potential. Communication is also important for the manager to understand what issues are preventing employees from performing duties at a maximum potential. “Active support from the management in such activities via resources, time, recognition, a clear vision and guidelines can positively influence the knowledge seeking and contribution behavior or individuals.” (2011 ). Adopting...
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...whether flexible work schedules in Canada are created by employers for business reasons or to assist their workers achieve work-life balance. We focus on long workweek, flextime, compressed workweek, variable workweek length and/or variable workweek schedule. Statistics Canada’s 2003 Workplace and Employee Survey data linking employee microdata to workplace (i.e., employer) microdata are used in the analysis. Results show that more than half of the workers covered in this data have at least one of the five specified types of flexible work schedules. Employment status, unionized work, occupation, and sector are factors consistently associated with flexible work schedules. Personal characteristics such as marital status, dependent children, and childcare use are not significantly associated with flexible work schedules, and females are less likely to have a flexible work schedule than are males. Overall, results suggest that flexible work schedules are created for business reasons rather than individual worker interests. KEyWORDS: work schedules, non-standard work, work-life balance This paper examines whether flexible work schedules in Canada are created by employers for business reasons or to assist their workers achieve work-life balance. We first explore the prevalence of different types of flexible work schedules in Canada, and then examine work, personal, human capital, workplace, and sector characteristics that might be associated with flexible work schedules...
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...apply to all workers, not just working parents, and their presence or absence in an organisation may have an effect on those facing a crisis pregnancy, particularly in judging their own ability to combine both work and family life. Some of the terms used in the literature on work-life balance are not commonly used or may be unfamiliar, thus explanations and definitions are given below: WLB: Work-life Balance, also referred to as family friendly work arrangements (FFWA), and, in international literature, as alternative work arrangements (AWA). V-Time: this is voluntary overtime to meet production needs; extra hours are 'banked' and taken as time off or as extra pay. It differs from flexitime where starting and finishing times are staggered, and can mean reduced or increased weekly working hours over a period of time. Work-life balance, workplace culture and maternity/childcare issues - A literature review Zero hours contract: this is a flexible contract that does not specify the amount of time a worker will spend per year on their employment, leaving it open to meet demand. E-working: the term used to describe flexible working that can be done from any location using technologies such as laptops, wireless internet connection and mobile phones. Teleworking: this is where the location is flexible by using technologies to complete work - this allows work to be done from home; also known as e-working. Term-time working: this is when a parent is allowed...
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...Directorate of Human Resources and the Business School Centre for Diversity Policy Research Work-Life Balance An audit of staff experience at Oxford Brookes University By Simonetta Manfredi and Michelle Holliday The Centre for Diversity Policy Research, Oxford Brookes University Work-Life Balance: An audit of staff experience at Oxford Brookes University ISBN 1 873576 70 6 Published by The Centre for Diversity Policy Research, Oxford Brookes University Wheatley Campus Oxon. OX33 1HX http://www.brookes.ac.uk/business/research/cdpr DiversityCentre@brookes.ac.uk All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data. A catalogue record of this publication is available from the British Library. Printed in Great Britain 2004. Authors: Simonetta Manfredi Co-Director, The Centre for Diversity Policy Research, Oxford Brookes University Michelle Holliday Equal Opportunities & Diversity Co-Ordinator, Oxford Brookes University Work-Life Balance: An audit of staff experience at Oxford Brookes University Page no. Contents 1 Acknowledgements 2 Executive Summary 2 1 5 Introduction: 1.1 Purpose...
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...Essay Question: 2. There has been an increase in the number of employers adopting flexible working practices. Critically examine the advantages and drawbacks of this for both the organisation and workforce. EARNING DEVELOPMENT THROUGH FEEDBACK Taking into account the numerous feedbacks I have received from different lecturers, they have helped me to tackle a research topic with necessary skills like referencing and the importance of having a well-laid out introduction and conclusion part. Throughout this learning process, I have ensured to come up with a research thesis that clearly lays out the focus of the essay within the introduction section. As a result of this, I have managed to write up effective arguments in relation to any provided topic as can be shown in this assignment. Prepared by (Student’s Name) The context for which current jobs take place is changing in a more rapid way thereby developing new issues and chances for organisations in the United Kingdom, Australia and beyond (Podnar & Golob, 2010). Prior conventional ways for executing work is deemed to be no longer valid since the modern working environments are far much defines by such aspects as advanced technologies; new societal values; ever-changing demographics; and, also aggressive rapid globalisation. Considering the fact that there has been significant increase in the level of business environment sophistication; it is asserted that flexibility is then deemed to be a crucial element to future...
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...These high percentages have led some to believe that students who work suffer from decreased academic performance (Steinberg, Fegley, & Dornbusch, 1993). However, others feel that employment can have a positive effect if in the proper proportions (Dallam & Hoyt, 1981). Research regarding this topic is mixed. Consequently, the current study will attempt to provide further empirical evidence with which to better understand the effects of employment on academic achievement. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Employment among college students has been increasing rapidly. Its effect on the academic performance of students has been questioned by many researchers (Green, 1987). Some of the issues raised in the literature concern matters such as the number of hours worked, whether the students’ jobs pertain to their majors, and the students’ workloads. As more students are employed, they face having to balance their academic requirements, extracurricular...
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...Introduction Flexible work arrangement denotes that employers permit employees to have alternative work schedule or arrangement apart from the traditional working conditions; allowing people who are unable to work at traditional office hours due to personal or family commitments to join the workforce. The common flexible work arrangement includes Flexi-Time, Part-Time Work, Job Sharing and Telecommuting. Gajendran and Harrison (2007, 1538) have concluded that flexible work arrangement has positive effective on work-family conflict, work performance, job satisfaction, turnover and work-stress. Flexible Work Arrangement in Singapore In Singapore, more corporate entities are adopting flexible work arrangements as part of its organisational strategy. There are several factors that drives Singapore’s need for flexible work arrangements. As a country that is dependent on its strong Gross-Domestic-Productivity (GDP) to boost its economy, the availability and size of the workforce in Singapore is vital to sustain its strong economic growth annually (Anwar, 2008, 448). Therefore, in order to increase the number of domestic workforce, many measures are in place to facilitate the re-entry of women with family responsibilities and retirees back to the workforce. With the increasing number of women and retirees back in the workforce, there is a need for companies to implement flexible work arrangements to cater to the different needs of these people. As mentioned earlier, there are...
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...Samsung’s voluntary commuting system to allow 4 hours per day “Samsung Elec. to allow employees to work 4 hours per day company-wide” http://news.mk.co.kr/english/newsRead.php?sc=30800006&cm=English%20News_&year=2013&no=917458&selFlag=&relatedcode=&wonNo=&sID=308 From October 1, Samsung expands its four-hour flexible working system company-wide. In Samsung, they call this system ‘Voluntary commuting system’. This system allows employees to work 4 hour per day under the condition that they fulfill 40 working hours per week. In previous system, workers had to work at least 8 hours a day. Therefore, you can schedule your working hours more flexibly with new system. For example, if you have a personal thing to do in Friday, you can work more in Monday to Thursday and work only 4 hours in Friday. Samsung has been testing this system in DMC R&D Center in Suwon and semiconductor R&D Institute in Hwaseong. They are going to select the first group of workers who are going to be beneficial from this policy among their staff in R&D or design at all divisions including mobile, home appliance, TV, etc. Consequently the number of workers subject to the system will increase from 5,000 to 10,000. They are planning to expand the system company-wide. The reason why Samsung adopts such an experimental system is to boost the creativity. They are expecting that flexible working condition will increase the creative thinking of their employees. Of course there are some worries regarding the...
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