Preferred Working Hours Research Articles

THE IMPACT OF WORK HOURS, AGE, AND BONUSES ON PRODUCTIVITY AND JOB SATISFACTION AMONG TEMPORARY WORKERS

Temporary workers play a vital role in various industries, yet their productivity and satisfaction are often influenced by factors such as work hours, age, and financial incentives. This study aimed to analyze the distribution and impact of these variables on temporary employees to identify trends and provide actionable insights for workforce management. Using a descriptive research design, data were collected from 80 workers categorized by work hours (30–50 hours/week), age groups (25–45 years), and bonus ranges (IDR 150,000–450,000). The analysis revealed that most workers preferred standard work hours (30–35 hours/week), younger workers aged 25–30 years dominated the workforce (32%), and the majority received bonuses in the lower range (IDR 150,000–200,000). The findings highlight the importance of moderate work hours, fair incentive systems, and age-specific strategies to enhance the productivity and satisfaction of temporary workers. This study concludes that tailored employment policies and transparent bonus structures are essential for fostering a motivated and effective temporary workforce.

What (wo)men want? Evidence from a factorial survey on preferred work hours in couples after childbirth

Abstract The division of labour remains persistently gendered, in particular among couples with children. Previous research shows that women’s lower economic resources are an important factor driving these inequalities, but because gender and (relative) earnings are highly correlated in male–female couples, their relative importance is difficult to disentangle with observational data. Using a factorial survey conducted among approximately 700 employed men and women of childbearing age in Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands, the contribution of relative earnings and gender in explaining work-care divisions in couples with children is disentangled. The results show that men and women do not differ in their preferences for their own work hours after childbirth, but both prefer the father to work more hours than the mother. Moreover, the combination of own and partners’ preferred hours shows that men and women in all three countries prefer a modified male-breadwinner model after childbirth in scenarios where the male partner earns more or partners have equal earnings. Preferences for egalitarian divisions of labour appear to be slightly stronger in men compared to women and respondents with more egalitarian views on care tasks show less gender-specialization.

Staff Scheduling Using Android Application

bstract: The staff scheduling Android app is a solution designed specifically for educational institutions to effectively manage their staff schedules. It addresses common challenges colleges and institutes face in scheduling their teachers and staff members. The app provides several key features to streamline the scheduling process. Teachers can easily access their schedules through the app, allowing them to view their assigned subjects and corresponding timings for each day of the week. This ensures that teachers are aware of their responsibilities and can plan their time accordingly. Additionally, the app enables teachers to request time off directly through the system. They can submit requests for leave or absence, which then go through an approval process by management. This feature eliminates the need for manual paperwork and simplifies the process for both teachers and administrators. Furthermore, the app facilitates shift swapping among staff members. If a teacher needs to change their assigned shift with another teacher, they can initiate a swap request through the app. This feature helps ensure that scheduling conflicts are resolved efficiently and avoids any disruption to the overall timetable. The app also allows staff members to manage their availability. Teachers can indicate their preferred working hours and days, enabling the system to consider their availability when generating schedules. This feature helps to accommodate individual preferences and ensures a fair distribution of workload among staff members. Lastly, the app includes communication tools that enable teachers to interact with management. Teachers can use the app to send messages or notifications regarding scheduling concerns, requests, or any other relevant information. This feature promotes effective communication between staff and administration, leading to smoother operations and timely problem resolution. Overall, this Android-based staff scheduling system addresses the specific needs of educational institutions by providing a comprehensive solution for managing staff schedules. By automating scheduling processes and offering convenient features for both teachers and administrators, the app improves efficiency, reduces administrative overhead, and enhances communication within the institution

Work hour mismatches and sickness absence and the moderating role of human resource practices: Evidence from Germany

Working time mismatches – and especially overemployment – continue to be a highly relevant topic in German legislation, business practice and in research. However, it has been rather neglected in empirical absenteeism research. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the relationship between contractual overemployment, that is, the difference between contractual and preferred working hours, and sickness absence in Germany. Furthermore, this study explores the moderating role of HR practices (flexible work arrangements and part-time employment) on this relationship. Therefore, I conduct two-level negative binomial regression analyses, using data from the German Socio-economic panel (GSOEP). In line with the JD-R model, results indicate that overemployment (especially overemployment of 6–10 hours compared to a work hour match) is positively related to sickness absence. However, the moderating role of flexible work arrangements, that is, the buffer effect of working time autonomy on this link cannot be confirmed. Moreover, the results suggest that part-time employment amplifies the relationship between overemployment (1–5 hours) and sickness absence for females only. This study highlights the need to move away from standardised work hour arrangements. Indeed, it is one of the first studies that emphasises the role of preference-based contractual working hours in reducing absenteeism, also and especially because standard HR practices do not mitigate overemployment-related absenteeism, but can in fact exacerbate it. Furthermore, this study contributes to theory and literature, by extending the JD-R model to overemployment.

Early child care and the employment potential of mothers: evidence from semi-parametric difference-in-differences estimation

This paper examines the effect of an expansion of subsidized early child care on maternal labor market outcomes. It contributes to the literature by analyzing, apart from the employment rate, the adjustment of agreed working hours and especially of preferred working hours. Semi-parametric difference-in-differences estimation based on survey data from the German Microcensus results in positive effects on the employment rate, as well as on agreed and preferred working hours by up to 20% of the pre-reform mean. As agreed and preferred working hours adjust in line with each other, the expansion of early child care can tap labor market potentials beyond those of currently underemployed mothers. Moreover, conditional effects show that especially better educated and non-single mothers respond to the reform.

Presenteeism Is Reloaded and Ready for Further Research – A Commentary on Priebe, J. and Hägerbäumer, M. (2023)

Presenteeism Is Reloaded and Ready for Further Research – A Commentary on Priebe, J. and Hägerbäumer, M. (2023)

Eksik İstihdam ile İşten Ayrılma Niyeti Arasındaki İlişki

This study aims to investigate the relationships between all sizes of underemployment and turnover intention. The data obtained using the survey method were analyzed by statistical methods such as Exploratory Factor Analysis, Kruskal Wallis H, Mann Whitney U, Spearman Correlation Analysis. It was concluded that the turnover intention scores of those who work in jobs whose average weekly working hours are not compatible with their preferred working hours, who are involuntary part-time and temporary or of limited term, who receive less wages than their previous jobs, and which are not suitable for their education level, are higher. The empirical results show a significant and positive link between overqualification-underemployment and turnover intention. All the study’s hypotheses were accepted, and implications were discussed.

Predictors of Satisfaction With Work Environment in the Context of a Mismatch in Working Hours: A Nationwide, Large-Scale, Cross-Sectional Study.

This nationwide, large-scale, cross-sectional study has hypothesized that there might be differences in workers’ satisfaction with work environment depending on demographic, socio-economic, and work characteristics in the context of a mismatch between actual and preferred working hours. The current study is a secondary data analysis of the Fifth Korean Working Conditions Survey. A total of 29 694 subjects (n = 29 694) were finally included in the current study. Female gender (β = −.372, OR 0.689 [95% CI 0.646-0.736]), age of ≥60 years old (β = .226, OR 1.253 [95% CI 1.089-1.441]), graduation from middle school (β = −.320, OR 0.726 [95% CI 0.616-0.856]), college (β = .492, OR 1.636 [95% CI 1.371-1.952]), or university (β = .826, OR 2.283 [95% CI 1.918-2.718]), fixed period of work (β = −.105, OR 0.901 [95% CI 0.823-0.986]), full-time employment (β = −.105, OR 0.900 [95% CI 0.813-0.996]), the engagement in public sector (β = .544, OR 1.722 [95% CI 1.532-1.935]), private-public partnership organization (β = .605, OR 1.832 [95% CI 1.342-2.500]) or NPO or NGO (β = .780, OR 2.182 [95% CI 1.522-3.127]), regular side job (β = −.929, OR 0.395 [95% CI 0.289-0.539]), or temporary side job (β = −.330, OR 0.719 [95% CI 0.533-0.970]), membership of multiple teams (β = −.501, OR 0.606 [95% CI 0.552-0.666]), labor union (β = .143, OR 1.154 [95% CI 1.047-1.273]), and better health status (β = .977, OR 2.657 [95% CI 1.175-6.007]) were predictors of satisfaction with work environment in the context of a mismatch between actual and desired working hours. Based on the current results, it can be concluded that female gender, age of ≥60 years old, graduation from middle school, college, or university, fixed period of work, full-time employment, the engagement in public sector, private-public partnership organization or NPO or NGO, regular side job or temporary side job, membership of multiple teams, labor union, and better health status were predictors of satisfaction with work environment.

Nurses reports of actual work hours and preferred work hours per shift among frontline nurses during coronavirusdisease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic: A cross-sectional survey.

BackgroundThe Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is an ongoing pandemic all over the world, leading to 126, 372, 442 people diagnosed and 2, 769, 696 deaths globally as of March 28, 2021. Nurses are providing care to patients with COVID-19 who require hospitalization. To ensure adequate response capacity and to maintain the health of nurses, it is important to analyse the actual work hours and the nurses reported preferred work hours per shift among frontline nurses.ObjectiveTo analyse the actual work hours and preferred work hours per shift of nurses reports among frontline nurses fighting the COVID-19 epidemic and to explore the influencing factors on the nurses reported preferred work hours.DesignCross-sectional surveySetting(s)This study was conducted in 10 designated hospitals providing treatments to patients with COVID-19 in China.ParticipantsNurses providing care to patients with COVID-19 in designated hospitals in China.MethodsA questionnaire with open-ended questions was used to assess frontline nurses caring for COVID-19 cases in 10 designated hospitals. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to analyse the actual work hours, the nurses reported preferred work hours and factors influencing nurses reported preferred work hours among the frontline nurses.ResultsA total of 109 nurses responded to the survey. The shift length exceeded the nurses’ preferred work hours [Median (interquartile range): 5.00 (2.00) h vs 4.00 (2.00) h; Minimum-Maximum: 4–12 h vs 4–8 h], and 60.55% (66/109) of the nurses regarded 4 h as the preferred number of work hours per shift. Five key themes associated with the influencing factors emerged, including circumstances; personal preventable equipment; the nurses’ physical and emotional needs of nurse; and the nurses’ safety needs and work intensity.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that there is a gap between the actual work hours and the nurses preferred work hours among frontline nurses in different units and different posts. The main influencing factors were circumstances, personal protective equipment, the nurses’ physical and emotional needs, and the nurses’ safety needs and work intensity.

Is Work Hour Mismatch Associated with Depression?

BackgroundMany studies have reported noticeable increases in the proportion of employees working either relatively short or relatively long hours. Such trends have been accompanied by an increasing concern regarding work hour mismatches defined as a discrepancy between actual and preferred work hours. The aim of this study was to investigate association between work hour mismatch and depression.MethodsData regarding work hour mismatches for 47,551 adults were extracted from the 2017 Korean Working Conditions Survey. The World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index was used to measure depression. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the association between work hour mismatch and depression.ResultsMen and women workers with work hour mismatch were more likely to have depression [underemployed males: odds ratio (OR) = 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.14–1.49, overemployed males: OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.18–1.40; underemployed females: OR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.20–1.56, overemployed females: OR = 1.12, 95% CI = 1.02–1.23]. Underemployed workers, workers who worked more than 52 hours per week, and workers with a high income level, all had higher ORs for depression. The greater the discrepancy between actual and preferred work hours, the higher OR for depression among both underemployed and overemployed workers.ConclusionsA difference between actual and preferred work hours was associated with depression. Underemployed workers had a higher risk of depression than that of overemployed workers. As a work hour mismatch negatively affected workers' mental health, it is important to reduce work hours mismatches as well as shorten the absolute number of work hours.

WITHDRAWN: Nurses reports of actual work hours and preferred work hours per shift among frontline nurses during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic: A cross-sectional survey

This article has been withdrawn at the request of the editor. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. The full Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal can be found at https://www.elsevier.com/about/our-business/policies/article-withdrawal.

Too much or too little work? Couples’ actual and preferred employment patterns and work hours mismatches in Europe

The most widely cited European data on work hours mismatches at the couple level date back to the 1990s. The general gist of analyses of these data was that ‘overworked’ dual-earner couples frequently preferred work hours reductions, especially those with childcare responsibilities. This study uses more recent data from the European Social Survey (2010-12) to update the available evidence on actual and preferred breadwinner models and on the occurrence and determinants of work hours mismatches among couples in Europe. The focus is on differences between demographic groups and countries in the degree to which cohabiting couples are either underemployed (working fewer hours than desired) or overemployed (working more hours than desired). Our analyses show that about one third of couples are underemployed, while only one in ten report being overemployed. We identify low education and the presence of children below school age as risk factors for underemployment, whereas highly educated women and fathers of teenagers tend to be overemployed. In a comparison of 16 European countries, we find couples in Greece, Ireland, Slovenia, and Spain to be most at risk of experiencing underemployment – in the countries that were most strongly affected by the recession. The effects of children on the experience of hours mismatches are found to vary across Europe – a particularly strong association of children below school age with parental underemployment is observed in Central and Eastern Europe, Finland, and Germany and a particularly weak one in Great Britain, Greece, Ireland, and Sweden. Zusammenfassung Die letzte große Erhebung und Analyse von Umfragedaten zu den Arbeitszeitpräferenzen von Paaren in Europa wurde in den 1990er Jahren durchgeführt. Der Tenor dieser Analysen war, dass sich die oft ‚überarbeiteten‘ Zweiverdiener-Paare in vielen Fällen eine Reduktion ihrer Arbeitszeit wünschen, vor allem bei Vorliegen von Kinderbetreuungspflichten. Die vorliegende Studie nützt jüngere Daten aus dem European Social Survey (2010-12). Der Fokus der Analyse liegt auf Unterschieden zwischen demographischen Gruppen und Ländern im Ausmaß zu dem Paare mehr oder weniger Stunden erwerbstätig sind als dies ihren Präferenzen entspricht (Über- bzw. Unterbeschäftigung). Die Analysen zeigen, dass rund ein Drittel der Paare unterbeschäftigt ist (Präferenz für Arbeitszeitaufstockung), während nur rund eines von zehn Paaren angibt, überbeschäftigt zu sein (Präferenz für Arbeitszeitreduktion). Als Risikofaktoren für Unterbeschäftigung werden niedrige Bildung und Kinder im Vorschulalter sowie auf der Länderebene hohe Arbeitslosigkeit (Griechenland, Irland, Slowenien, Spanien) identifiziert. Höher gebildete Frauen bzw. Paare mit älteren Kindern sind dagegen mit einer höheren Wahrscheinlichkeit überbeschäftigt. Der Effekt von kleinen Kindern auf das Risiko von Unterbeschäftigung variiert ja nach Land. Stärkere Effekte werden in Zentral- und Osteuropa, Finnland und Deutschland beobachtet, vergleichsweises geringe oder keine Effekte in Großbritannien, Griechenland, Irland und Schweden.

Underemployment, overemployment and deterioration of mental health: the role of job rewards.

Working more (overemployment) or less (underemployment) than preferred has been associated with poor mental health in cross-sectional studies, but longitudinal evidence is scarce. We investigate whether under- and overemployment is associated with 2-year changes of mental health and whether associations vary by job rewards (i.e. high earnings, job security, promotion prospects and occupational prestige). We used two waves of the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), with information on mental health collected in 2006 and 2008. Workers in paid employment (3266 men and 3139 women) who did not change jobs between 2006 and 2008, aged 20-60years were selected. Under- and overemployment was assessed using the discrepancy between the actual and preferred working hours. Mental health was assessed using the Mental Component Summary (MCS) score, a subscale from the Short Form 12 Health Survey. Questions on rewards at work were added and divided into tertiles. Conditional change models were estimated to predict change in MCS. Findings indicate that overemployment and low reward at work (for men and women) were linked to a reduction in mental health. Underemployment was not related to a reduction in mental health. Albeit associations between under-/overemployment and mental health slightly differed across levels of reward, interactions did not reach statistical significance. Our findings demonstrate that overemployment was related to negative mental health change, and that this relationship held true both for people with high and with low reward at work.

The Work and Wishes of Fathers: Actual and Preferred Work Hours among German Fathers

The Work and Wishes of Fathers: Actual and Preferred Work Hours among German Fathers

Working hour preferences of female and male residents : Developments over 4years of postgraduate medical training in Germany

This article addresses developments regarding working hours and working hour preferences of residents undergoing postgraduate training in Germany and analyses if, and for what reasons, full-time or part-time working models are preferred. The source of data is the KarMed study, which is based on yearly postal surveys carried out among graduates of the year 2008/2009 from seven medical faculties in Germany. The interviews took place during the entire postgraduate training period. Response rates were 48% in the first year, with subsequent rates of above 85%. For analysis, descriptive statistics and regression models were applied. There is aconsiderable discrepancy between the actual and the preferred working hours of residents undergoing postgraduate training. Postgraduate training is mostly linked to full-time contracts, usually with additional overtime, even though a considerable proportion of doctors prefer apart-time position. More female residents want to work part-time than male doctors. The same applies for the period after medical specialism: in particular, female doctors with children, female doctors trained in former Western Germany states, and those seeking an occupation in outpatient care request part-time contracts for their professional future. Asimilar trend has been increasingly observed over the years for male doctors. Despite the huge number of residents requesting part-time contracts - during postgraduate training and afterward - the reality is still far behind this model. It is apparent that measures should be taken for both genders. Those measures should facilitate the implementation of the favored working-time model.

Health and safety matters! Associations between organizational practices and personal support workers\u2019 life and work stress in Ontario, Canada

BackgroundThe home and community care sector is one of the fastest growing sectors globally and most prominently in mature industrialized countries. Personal support workers (PSWs) are the largest occupational group in the sector. This paper focuses on the emotional health of PSWs working in the home and community care sector in Ontario, Canada. The purpose of this paper is to present evidence on the associations between PSWs’ life and work stress and organizational practices of full-time and guaranteed hours, and PSWs’ perceptions of support at work and preference for hours.MethodsData come from our 2015 survey of 1543 PSWs. Dependent variables are life and work stress. Independent variables are: objective organizational practices of full-time and guaranteed hours, and subjective organizational practices of perceived support at work, and preferred hours of work. Descriptive statistics, correlations and ordinary least square regression analyses with collinearity tests are conducted.ResultsOrganizational practices of employing PSWs in full-time or guaranteed hours are not associated with their life and work stress. However, those who perceive support from their organizations are also the ones reporting lower life and work stress. In addition, those PSWs perceiving support from their supervisor report lower work stress. PSWs would like to work in their preferred hours, and those who prefer to work more hours report lower life and work stress, and conversely, those who prefer to work less hours report life and work stress.ConclusionFor PSWs in home and community care, perceived support from their organizations and supervisors, and employment in preferred hours are important factors related to their life and work stress.

Stakeholders' Perspectives on Stakeholder-engaged Research (SER): Strategies to Operationalize Patient-centered Outcomes Research Principles for SER.

US federal funding agencies increasingly incentivize stakeholder-engaged research which represents a paradigm shift toward incorporating a range of stakeholders in research design, conduct, and dissemination. We use qualitative methods to capture experience-based recommendations on how to operationalize 4 Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) principles in stakeholder-engaged research, specifically: (1) reciprocal relationships; (2) colearning; (3) partnership; and (4) trust, transparency, and honesty. We conducted semistructured interviews with members of a stakeholder panel who participated in a 2-year comparative effectiveness study of cholesterol screening and treatment among young adults. Participants included 8 young adults and parent panelists and 11 professional panelists (clinicians, researchers, policy developers, and disseminators). The interview guide included questions about the 4 PCOR principles and queried preferred strategies to attain them. Interview transcripts were analyzed using an a priori and emergent coding structure. Participants provided strategies to promote the 4 PCOR principles. Although some stakeholder-identified strategies were complementary, others conflicted due to (1) competing ideologies identified among the principles, and (2) distinct stakeholder preferences. Illustrative of competing ideologies, participants simultaneously preferred receiving relevant articles before calls (to facilitate colearning) but also minimal outside reading (to achieve partnership). Illustrative of distinct stakeholder preferences, young adult and parent panelists generally preferred calls to occur on weekends/evenings, whereas professional panelists preferred mid-week work hours. Our exploratory study provides stakeholder-identified strategies to achieve the 4 PCOR principles, and demonstrates the need to identify, acknowledge, and address potentially conflicting strategies due to the potential for competing ideologies or variation in stakeholder preferences.

Introduction to special issue on work and family from a life course perspective

This study investigates how social policies, gender norms, and the national working time regime shape mothers’ preferred working hours. Using data from the European Social Survey (ESS) for 15 countries across Western Europe, the study reveals that generous public child care and cultural support for gender equality are associated with smaller gaps in the preferred working hours between mothers and childless women. High levels of financial support for families, in contrast, predict larger gaps in preferred working hours. The analysis also indicates that a low prevalence of non-standard work and high levels of work-time flexibility reduce the differences in preferred employment hours between mothers and non-mothers. Individual characteristics such as education, gender ideology, and the partners’ socioeconomic status greatly impact women's preferred employment hours; however, they do not modify the effect of motherhood. This study concludes that the impact of parenthood on women's employment hours is highly contingent upon various institutional and cultural factors.

Does temporal and locational flexibility of work increase the supply of working hours? Evidence from the Netherlands

Abstract In recent years, many employees have gained more control over temporal and locational aspects of their work via a variety of flexible work arrangements, such as flexi-time and telehomework. This temporal and locational flexibility of work (TLF) is often seen as a means to facilitate the combination of work and private life. As such it has been recommended as a policy to increase the average number of working hours of part-time workers. To the best of our knowledge, the effectiveness of this policy instrument has not been tested empirically yet. We therefore analyse whether flexi-time and telehomework arrangements increase the number of actual, contracted, and preferred working hours. Based on Dutch household panel data, our results indicate that the link between TLF and working hours is quite weak. Telehomework is associated with moderate increases in actual hours, but not in contracted or preferred hours. Flexi-time generally does not seem to be associated with an increase in hours worked. Despite positive effects on job satisfaction and working time fit, we do not find any convincing evidence of a positive effect of TLF on labour supply. JEL classification: J22, J32, M52, M54

Arbeitszeitwünsche und ihre kurzfristige Realisierung

In the debate on working time there have been recent new developments and various concepts of optional working hours have been in the discussion. This has been triggered by the large numbers of workers in Germany who wish to change their working hours so that the demands of non work-related activities or caring responsibilities can be brought into balance with the demands of work. While differences between actual and preferred working hours have been relatively well researched, little is known about the individual successes in adjusting real working time to desired hours of work over time. By means of longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP), this article presents first empirical evidence and thus contributes towards closing this gap in research. Our findings indicate that more than two fifths of all employees who wish to change their weekly working time by at least five hours are able to achieve a real change of at least three hours in the short term. Most successful are those wishing to change their place of work and seeking to achieve bigger changes to their working time.