"The expert contributors [to this volume] examine the resurgence in the use of work sharing as a job preservation strategy via country case studies of work-sharing programmes implemented across the globe during the Great Recession of 2008-2009. These studies clearly illustrate that work sharing has been successful as a crisis-response measure in a number of countries. Lessons learned and their implications are presented alongside prescriptions on how to design permanent work-sharing policies that would provide appropriate incentives to generate positive effects for employment and promote a sustainable and job-rich economic recovery"--Page 4 of cover.
This guide to the obstacles and issues of job sharing includes anecdotal stories about alloting time and responsibilities, finding a compatible job-sharing partner, and handling task distribution.
The historical relationship between capital and labor has evolved in the past few decades. One particularly noteworthy development is the rise of shared capitalism, a system in which workers have become partial owners of their firms and thus, in effect, both employees and stockholders. Profit sharing arrangements and gain-sharing bonuses, which tie compensation directly to a firm’s performance, also reflect this new attitude toward labor. Shared Capitalism at Work analyzes the effects of this trend on workers and firms. The contributors focus on four main areas: the fraction of firms that participate in shared capitalism programs in the United States and abroad, the factors that enable these firms to overcome classic free rider and risk problems, the effect of shared capitalism on firm performance, and the impact of shared capitalism on worker well-being. This volume provides essential studies for understanding the increasingly important role of shared capitalism in the modern workplace.
This book brings together recent research developments in relating theory. It is divided into four parts, which introduce the reader to relating theory, how it has developed and how it can be applied to clinical and forensic psychology. Topics include how couples relate to one another, how young people relate to their parents, how assessments of relating can be used in therapy, how specific negative relating styles relate to offending behaviour, risk taking and alcohol use, psychopathic and sadistic tendencies, and how the interpersonal relating of offenders can change during treatment in prison. The book covers international research involving both quantitative and qualitative methods, and will be of interest to clinicians, academics and both undergraduate and postgraduate students in the fields of psychology, clinical psychology, forensic/criminal psychology, psychiatry, psychotherapy, counselling, art-therapy, and mental health.
The economic boom of the 1990s veiled a grim reality: in addition to the growing gap between rich and poor, the gap between good and bad quality jobs was also expanding. The postwar prosperity of the mid-twentieth century had enabled millions of American workers to join the middle class, but as author Arne L. Kalleberg shows, by the 1970s this upward movement had slowed, in part due to the steady disappearance of secure, well-paying industrial jobs. Ever since, precarious employment has been on the rise—paying low wages, offering few benefits, and with virtually no long-term security. Today, the polarization between workers with higher skill levels and those with low skills and low wages is more entrenched than ever. Good Jobs, Bad Jobs traces this trend to large-scale transformations in the American labor market and the changing demographics of low-wage workers. Kalleberg draws on nearly four decades of survey data, as well as his own research, to evaluate trends in U.S. job quality and suggest ways to improve American labor market practices and social policies. Good Jobs, Bad Jobs provides an insightful analysis of how and why precarious employment is gaining ground in the labor market and the role these developments have played in the decline of the middle class. Kalleberg shows that by the 1970s, government deregulation, global competition, and the rise of the service sector gained traction, while institutional protections for workers—such as unions and minimum-wage legislation—weakened. Together, these forces marked the end of postwar security for American workers. The composition of the labor force also changed significantly; the number of dual-earner families increased, as did the share of the workforce comprised of women, non-white, and immigrant workers. Of these groups, blacks, Latinos, and immigrants remain concentrated in the most precarious and low-quality jobs, with educational attainment being the leading indicator of who will earn the highest wages and experience the most job security and highest levels of autonomy and control over their jobs and schedules. Kalleberg demonstrates, however, that building a better safety net—increasing government responsibility for worker health care and retirement, as well as strengthening unions—can go a long way toward redressing the effects of today’s volatile labor market. There is every reason to expect that the growth of precarious jobs—which already make up a significant share of the American job market—will continue. Good Jobs, Bad Jobs deftly shows that the decline in U.S. job quality is not the result of fluctuations in the business cycle, but rather the result of economic restructuring and the disappearance of institutional protections for workers. Only government, employers and labor working together on long-term strategies—including an expanded safety net, strengthened legal protections, and better training opportunities—can help reverse this trend. A Volume in the American Sociological Association’s Rose Series in Sociology.
Flextime, telecommuting, compressed work week, job sharing, downshifting, and hot desking—these terms are infiltrating our vocabulary at an increasing rate, keeping pace with change in the workplace. Although there is a large body of literature on the changing nature of work and workplace flexibility, there is no handbook that synthesizes the research on all aspects of this topic. Pulling together the vast literature on this subject, Avery and Zabel explain the concept of flexible work, trace the origin and growth of this workplace trend, and review the research on a range of flexible work arrangements. Workplace flexibility is international in scope. Companies, both in the United States and abroad, have become increasingly interested in implementing flexible work arrangements. The authors include a chapter on companies in North America, Western Europe, and the United Kingdom that have been leaders in implementing flexible work arrangements. They identify areas ripe for additional research, suggest a broad array of resources, and discuss strategies for locating additional information, including relevant databases, Internet resources, organizations, and search terms. This is a valuable handbook for managers, researchers, and students working or studying in the areas of human resource management, industrial/organizational psychology, and the sociology of work.
This new edition builds on the strengths and successes of the first edition and has been fully updated to reflect changes in the world of work, following the global financial crisis. The authors combine a managerial approach, focusing on practical, real-world applications, with a rigorous critical perspective that analyses the research behind the theories. The text addresses alternative theoretical perspectives, in parallel to the introduction of new worldwide cases and examples. New pedagogical features, such as the Ethical Dilemma and Critical Thinking boxes, reinforce the critical approach. The concise coverage of the core topics can be applied to both one-semester and year-long teaching and learning patterns.
Effective human resource management is a critical function in today′s public workplace, and the authors have written a book that helps readers develop key skills for success while also reminding them of the complex puzzles and paradoxes of management in the public sector. The Second Edition has been completely revised and updated to reflect changes in practice, policy, law and scholarship and has been carefully crafted to be an effective learning tool, with learning objectives, chapter reviews, and three sets of end-chapter study questions (class discussion, team activities, and individual assignments). The book concludes with a comprehensive glossary, and interesting and illuminating examples are liberally scattered throughout the book.
