Zitatform

Schneider, Barbara (2011): The human face of workplace flexibility. In: The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Jg. 638, H. 1, S. 103-122. DOI:10.1177/0002716211415824

Abstract

"This article reviews several recent studies on working families and discusses the importance of why workplace flexibility needs to become a standard of the U.S. workplace. Most children reside in households with either two employed parents or an employed single parent. The inflexibility of work and school schedules is a pressure that working parents feel on a daily basis and one that affects their work-related productivity, health, and family life. Whether employed in a white-collar job or in a low-wage one, employed parents often experience anxiety and guilt as they face the obligations of work and family. Parent-role overload and time deprivations are particularly acute problems that many employed mothers and fathers cope with on a daily basis. Overall, work-family conflict leads to decreased psychological well-being. Parents need to work to meet the needs of their families, yet their lives show signs that the current situation is untenable. A new balance needs to be achieved between work and home for working families." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ashenfelter, Orley C., Kirk B. Doran & Bruce Schaller (2010): A shred of credible evidence on the long run elasticity of labor supply. (NBER working paper 15746), Cambridge, Mass., 29 S. DOI:10.3386/w15746

Abstract

"Virtually all public policies regarding taxation and the redistribution of income rely on explicit or implicit assumptions about the long run effect of wages rates on labor supply. The available estimates of the wage elasticity of male labor supply in the literature have varied between -0.2 and 0.2, implying that permanent wage increases have relatively small, poorly determined effects on labor supplied. The variation in existing estimates calls for a simple, natural experiment in which men can change their hours of work, and in which wages have been exogenously and permanently changed. We introduce a panel data set of taxi drivers who choose their own hours, and who experienced two exogenous permanent fare increases instituted by the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, and we use these data to fit a simple structural labor supply function. Our estimates suggest that the elasticity of labor supply is about -0.2, implying that income effects dominate substitution effects in the long run labor supply of males." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Coffman, Julie & Russ Hagey (2010): Flexible work models. How to bring sustainability to a 24/7 world. Boston, MA, 8 S.

Abstract

Im Rahmen der Untersuchung zum Einsatz flexibler Arbeitszeitmodelle wurden mehr als 3.300 Fach- und Führungskräfte in den USA, Europa und Asien befragt. Es zeigt sich, dass auf den Einzelnen zugeschnittene Arbeitszeitmodelle die Arbeitszufriedenheit und die Bindung an das Unternehmen erhöhen. Wichtig ist, dass dieses Modelle durch die Unternehmensführung unterstützt werden. Außerdem sollten diese von Führungskräften genutzt und so deren Machbarkeit demonstriert werden. Die vorgestellten Maßnahmen dienen auch zu einer Erhöhung des Frauenanteils in Führungspositionen, da diese besonderen Wert auf flexible Arbeitszeitmodelle legen. (IAB)

Zitatform

Frazis, Harley & Jay Stewart (2010): Why do BLS hours series tell different stories about trends in hours worked? (IZA discussion paper 4704), Bonn, 49 S.

Abstract

"Hours worked is an important economic indicator. In addition to being a measure of labor utilization, average weekly hours are inputs into measures of productivity and hourly wages, which are two key economic indicators. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics' two hours series tell very different stories. Between 1973 and 2007 average weekly hours estimated from the BLS's household survey (the Current Population Survey or CPS) indicate that average weekly hours of nonagricultural wage and salary workers decreased slightly from 39.5 to 39.3. In contrast, average hours estimated from the establishment survey (the Current Employment Statistics survey or CES) indicate that hours fell from 36.9 to 33.8 hours per week. Thus the discrepancy between the two surveys increased from about two-and-a-half hours per week to about five-and-a-half hours. Our goal in the current study is to reconcile the differences between the CPS and CES estimates of hours worked and to better understand what these surveys are measuring. We examine a number of possible explanations for the divergence of the two series: differences in workers covered, multiple jobholding, differences in the hours concept (hours worked vs. hours paid), possible overreporting of hours in CPS, and changes in the length of CES pay periods. We can explain most of the difference in levels, but cannot explain the divergent trends." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Reynolds, Jeremy & Lydia Aletraris (2010): Mostly mismatched with a chance of settling: Tracking work hour mismatches in the United States. In: Work and occupations, Jg. 37, H. 4, S. 476-511. DOI:10.1177/0730888410383245

Abstract

"Mismatches between Americans' actual and preferred hours of paid work are common, but the understanding of such mismatches is still limited. In this article, the authors provide the first large-scale, longitudinal study of hour mismatches in the United States. They found that the population of workers with hour mismatches is in constant flux. Nevertheless, hour mismatches seem to persist for long periods of time: The vast majority of respondents who wanted fewer hours when first interviewed still wanted fewer hours 5 years later. The authors also found inequalities in the methods through which people develop and resolve mismatches. Women who want fewer hours were less likely than men to resolve their mismatches by working less. Also, they found evidence suggesting that non-Whites who want fewer hours may be settling for the hours they can get rather than getting the hours they want." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Shockley, Kisten M. & Tammy D. Allena (2010): Investigating the missing link in flexible work arrangement utilization. An individual difference perspective. In: Journal of vocational behavior, Jg. 76, H. 1, S. 131-142. DOI:10.1016/j.jvb.2009.07.002

Abstract

"The present study investigates the relationship between individual differences and flexible work arrangement use. Three need-based motivational factors (need for affiliation at work, need for segmentation of work from other life roles, need for occupational achievement) were examined in relation to extent of flextime and flexplace use. Additionally, the moderating roles of an organizational variable (face-time orientation) and family variable (family responsibility) were tested. Using a sample of university faculty, we found that need for segmentation negatively related to both flextime and flexplace use as predicted. Some evidence for the moderating role of family responsibility was also found. The findings underscore the importance of considering both the individual and the environment as drivers of flexible policy use. Further implications and future directions are discussed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Stewart, Jay (2010): The timing of maternal work and time with children. In: Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Jg. 64, H. 1, S. 181-200. DOI:10.1177/001979391006400109

Abstract

"The author investigates how maternal employment affects when during the day that employed mothers engage in enriching childcare and whether they adjust their work schedules to spend time with their children at more-desirable times of day. Using data from the American Time Use Survey and focusing on mothers of pre-school-aged children, he finds that both full- and part-time employed mothers shift enriching childcare time from workdays to non-workdays. On workdays, full-time employed mothers shift enriching care time to evenings, whereas part-time employed mothers shift care time very little. The author finds no evidence that mothers working full time adjust their work schedules to spend enriching time with their children at more preferred times of the day. In contrast, part-time employed mothers shift their work hours to later in the day in order to spend time with their children at more-desirable times of day." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Blair-Loy, Mary (2009): Work without end? Scheduling flexibility and work-to-family conflict among stockbrokers. In: Work and occupations, Jg. 36, H. 4, S. 279-317. DOI:10.1177/0730888409343912

Abstract

"The common finding in the work-family literature that workplace scheduling flexibility reduces work-to-family conflict may not be generalizable to service occupations with intense client demands. This qualitative analysis of stockbrokers finds that brokers in firms granting scheduling flexibility experience more work-to-family conflict than those in the firm with scheduling rigidity. Although brokers in the latter firm lose autonomy from their employer (and earning potential), bureaucratic rigidity buffers them from client pressures that intrude an family life. This finding should be tested in other occupations requiring extensive client interactions in a 24-hour economy." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Díaz, Antonia & Cristina Echevarria (2009): Why a fixed workweek? In: The Journal of Socio-Economics, Jg. 28, H. 5, S. 790-798. DOI:10.1016/j.socec.2009.03.017

Abstract

"The main goal of this article is to explain why the fixed workweek appeared. To this purpose we differentiate between 'jobs' and 'hours per job'. We consider an economy where hours and number of workers are substitutes in production but in which hiring a worker entails a fixed cost plus a variable cost per hour worked. As a consequence, firms would like workers to work as many hours as possible. In an unregulated economy, workers work more hours that they would like to at the on-going wage rate. This situation characterizes the economy of today's industrialized countries in the 19th century." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Fleck, Susan E. (2009): International comparisons of hours worked: an assessment of the statistics. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 132, H. 5, S. 3-31.

Abstract

"A study of 13 countries reveals that measures of hours worked based on administrative sources are relatively low while measures based on establishment and labor force surveys are relatively high; thus, although ever improving, these measures cannot yet be taken at face value and are useful only for broad comparisons." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Golden, Lonnie (2009): Flexible daily work schedules in U.S. jobs. Formal introductions needed? In: Industrial relations, Jg. 48, H. 1, S. 27-54. DOI:10.1111/j.1468-232X.2008.00544.x

Abstract

"The incidence of flexible daily starting and ending times of work presumably reflects the various underlying motivations of employers to offer them either as a formal workplace program or on a more selective basis. Access to scheduling flexibility is greater for managerial and professional, long hours, private sector, salaried and nonunion jobs, and for parents and men. This advantage is gained primarily through means other than a formal flexi-time plan. Implementation of more formal programs would likely promote more equity in access." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hazan, Moshe (2009): Longevity and lifetime labor supply. Evidence and implications. In: Econometrica, Jg. 77, H. 6, S. 1829-1863. DOI:10.3982/ECTA8107

Abstract

"Conventional wisdom suggests that increased life expectancy had a key role in causing a rise in investment in human capital. I incorporate the retirement decision into a version of Ben-Porath's (1967) model and find that a necessary condition for this causal relationship to hold is that increased life expectancy will also increase lifetime labor supply. I then show that this condition does not hold for American men born between 1840 and 1970 and for the American population born between 1890 and 1970. The data suggest similar patterns in Western Europe. I end by discussing the implications of my findings for the debate on the fundamental causes of long-run growth." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Langot, François & Coralia Quintero-Rojas (2009): European vs American hours worked. Assessing the role of the extensive and intensive margins. In: Economics Bulletin, Jg. 29, H. 2, S. 531-543.

Abstract

"Europeans have worked less than Americans since the 1970s. In this paper, we quantify the relative importance of the extensive and intensive margins of aggregate hours of market work on the observed differences. Our counterfactual exercises show that the two dimensions of the extensive margin, the employment rate and the participation rate, explain the most of the total-hours-gap between regions. Moreover, both ratios have similar weight. Conversely, the intensive margin, measured by the number of hours worked per employee, has the smallest role." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Maume, David J., Anthony R. Bardo & Rachel A. Sebastian (2009): Gender differences in sleep disruption among retail food workers. In: American Sociological Review, Jg. 74, H. 6, S. 989-1007.

Abstract

"As women pursue careers while retaining primary responsibility for family life, discretionary time is an emerging arena of gender inequality in contemporary life. This study examines gender inequality in waking role obligations and the implications for differences in sleep disruption. Drawing on a sample of 583 retail food workers, who regularly worked nights and rotating schedules, we find in our multivariate modeling that women experience significantly more sleep disruption than do men. A decomposition analysis shows that almost one-half of the gender gap in sleep disruption is accounted for by gender differences in health status and various dimensions of work-family context. By implication, the remainder of the gender gap in sleep disruption is attributable to differences in responsibility for work-family obligations. Given the need for more research on how work-family conflict affects health and well-being, further research on sleep patterns is warranted." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ramey, Valerie A. & Neville Francis (2009): A century of work and leisure. In: American Economic Journal. Macroeconomics, Jg. 1, H. 2, S. 189-224. DOI:10.1257/mac.1.2.189

Abstract

"We develop comprehensive measures of time spent in market work, home production, schooling, and leisure in the United States for the last 106 years. We find that hours of work for prime age individuals are essentially unchanged, with the rise in women's hours fully compensating for the decline in men's hours. Hours worked by those 14 to 24 years old have declined noticeably, but most of this decline was offset by a rise in hours spent in school. Overall, per capita leisure and average annual lifetime leisure increased by only four or five hours per week during the last 100 years." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Allard, Mary Dorinda & Marianne Janes (2008): Time use of working parents. A visual essay. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 131, H. 6, S. 3-14.

Abstract

"Working parents have many constraints on their time as they try to balance paid work, childcare, household activities, shopping, and leisure activities. The American Time Use Survey (ATUS) enables analysts to measure how Americans spend their time in primary activities - their main activities, in other words. This includes the measurement of time all working parents spend providing primary childcare, which consists of physical care of children; playing, reading, or talking with children; travel related to childcare; and other childcare activities. For those parents with children aged 12 or younger, it is also possible to measure the amount of time spent in more passive secondary childcare - that is, the amount of time that they have at least one child of that age group in their care while doing activities other than primary childcare. Focusing on both primary and secondary childcare gives a more complete picture of parents' time spent providing childcare. Unless otherwise specified, all data in this visual essay refer to married parents between the ages of 25 and 54 who were employed full time at the time of the survey; that is, they were usually working 35 or more hours per week." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Berg, Peter (2008): Working time flexibility in the German employment relations system. Implications for Germany and lessons for the United States. In: Industrielle Beziehungen, Jg. 15, H. 2, S. 133-150.

Abstract

"Wettbewerbsbedingungen führen zunehmend zu Dezentralisierungs-Experimenten im deutschen System der Arbeitsbeziehungen. In diesem Artikel wird gezeigt, inwiefern flexible Arbeitszeiten ein integraler Bestandteil des deutschen Systems sind und wie flexible Arbeitszeitmodelle zu dessen Transformation beitragen. Außerdem werden die Implikationen, die flexible Arbeitszeiten für Arbeitgeber und Arbeitnehmer haben, sowie die Lehren der deutschen Erfahrungen für die USA diskutiert. Flexible Arbeitszeiten tragen zur Dezentralisierung des deutschen Systems der Arbeitsbeziehungen auf diversen Ebenen bei, insbesondere innerhalb der Unternehmen. Aus Arbeitgebersicht nimmt der Nutzen flexibler Arbeitszeiten vielfältige Formen an und ist generell positiv, während die Implikationen für Arbeitnehmer ambivalenter Natur sind. Die wichtigste Lehre für die USA besteht darin, dass Arbeitsmarktinstitutionen nach wie vor relevant sind für die Entwicklung flexibler Arbeitszeitmodelle, die den Bedürfnissen sowohl der Arbeitgeber als auch der Arbeitnehmer gerecht werden." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Boeri, Tito, Michael Burda & Francis Kramarz (Hrsg.) (2008): Working hours and job sharing in the EU and USA. Are Europeans lazy? Or Americans crazy? (Report for the Fondazione Rodolfo DeBenedetti), Oxford u. a.: Oxford University Press, 269 S.

Abstract

"In the last 50 years the gap in labour productivity between Europe and the US has narrowed considerably with estimates in 2005 suggesting a EU-US labour productivity gap of about 5 per cent. Yet, average per capita income in the EU is still about 30 % lower than in the US. This persistent gap in income per capita can be almost entirely explained by Europeans working less than Americans. Why do Europeans work so little compared to Americans? What do they do with their spare time outside work? Can they be induced to work more without reducing labour productivity? If so, how? And what is the effect on well-being if policies are created to reward paid work as opposed to other potentially socially valuable activities, like childbearing? More broadly, should the state interfere at all when it comes to bargaining over working hours? This volume explores these questions and many more in an attempt to understand the changing nature of the hours worked in the USA and EU, as well as the effects of policies that impose working hour reductions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Boushey, Heather, Layla Moughari, Sarah Sattelmeyer & Margy Waller (2008): Work-life policies for the twenty-first century economy. Washington, 20 S.

Abstract

"The U.S. economy, workplace, workforce, and labor market have changed radically in the last 50 years, yet our public and private policies have not kept up with these changes. In recent years, policymakers have begun considering new options for allowing workers to meet the often-conflicting demands of work and other life obligations. These proposals include a variety of options for time off from work - both paid and unpaid - and more flexibility in the workplace. In this report, we review the evidence regarding work-life conflicts, the economic case for policy initiatives, and evidence of effectiveness of the policy options. We provide a clear explanation of these policy options and make recommendations for decision-makers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Connolly, Marie (2008): Here comes the rain again: Weather and the intertemporal substitution of leisure. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 26, H. 1, S. 73-136. DOI:10.1086/522067

Abstract

"I revisit the intertemporal labor supply framework, using exogenous variations in daily weather to see how time at work varies with rain. In my model, a rainy day is associated with a lower enjoyment of leisure, effectively increasing wages and bringing more hours at work. I test the model using data from the American Time Use Survey, supplemented with daily weather. I find that, on rainy days, men shift on average 30 minutes from leisure to work. Computations give a rough estimate of the intertemporal elasticity of labor supply of around 0.01, in line with the rest of the literature." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Demetriades, Stavroula & Roberto Perdersini (2008): Working time in the EU and other global economies. Industrial relations in the EU and other global economies 2006-7. Dublin, 66 S.

Abstract

"Globalisation is having a profound impact on economies and industrial relations systems all around the world. In the context of global competition, it is increasingly relevant to look at Europe's economic development in a wider perspective. This report explores the main industrial relations developments in the European Union, Japan and the US in the period 2006-2007. It charts the similarities and trends in industrial relations as well as the differences in basic structures and developments between these three major economies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gendell, Murray (2008): Older workers: increasing their labor force participation and hours of work. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 131, H. 1, S. 41-54.

Abstract

"Major changes in the movement of labor force participation rates and full-time employment of older workers have occurred during the past dozen years. A closer examination of available data reveals different trends in the labor force participation rates between workers aged 60 and older and workers aged 50-59, as well as varied trends by gender. This article updates two time series of data on the average age at retirement of men and women aged 50 years or older. One series uses the median age at exit from the labor force (hereafter, median age at exit), and the other uses the mean age at initial receipt of the retirement or disability benefit provided by the Social Security Administration (hereafter, the Social Security mean). The addition of the most recent 5-year period in the series, 2000-05, provides a 50-year perspective. The latest data show a continuation of the leveling off of the Social Security average age, but a further drop in the median age at exit. The reason for this decline is the same as it was for the decline between 1990-95 and 1995-2000, namely, that workers aged 60 years or older withdrew from the labor force at a lower rate than workers 50-59 years old, shifting the age distribution of the estimated number of net exits toward the younger ages. The reason for this difference in exit rates is that the labor force participation rates of men and women aged 60 years or older have increased considerably since at least 1994, while there has been little or no change at ages 50-59. For workers 60 years or older, the increases are a major reversal of men's long-run decline and a marked change from the previously flat trend among women. Furthermore, not only have these workers' participation rates risen impressively, but this age group also has been increasingly working full time - and doing so throughout the year." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hodler, Roland (2008): Leisure and redistribution. In: European journal of political economy, Jg. 24, H. 2, S. 354-363. DOI:10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2007.11.001

Abstract

"We study a model with majority voting on redistribution in which agents differ in their skills and their preferences for leisure. Redistribution is generous and average labor supply low if the decisive voter has relatively strong preferences for leisure, while redistribution is limited and average labor supply high if the decisive voter has relatively weak preferences for leisure. Given differences in the preference distributions due to cultural differences or positive complementarities in leisure, our model thus provides an explanation for the substantial differences in redistribution and average working hours between the United States and continental Western Europe." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Krantz-Kent, Rachel (2008): Teachers' work patterns: when, where, and how much do U.S. teachers work? In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 131, H. 3, S. 52-59.

Abstract

"Teachers' work patterns differ from those of many other professionals. In addition to teaching, they grade assignments, develop lesson plans, and perform other tasks in which they have some flexibility in determining when and where they work. Teachers' work schedules, too, are unique in that they often are tied to a traditional school year, with an extended break in the summer. This visual essay uses data from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) to examine how much teachers work, where they work, when they work, and how their work patterns compare with those of other professionals. In the ATUS, interviewers collect data in a time diary format, in which survey participants provide information about activities that they engaged in 'yesterday.' Because of the way in which the data are collected, it is possible to identify and quantify the work that teachers do at home, at a workplace, and at other locations and to examine the data by day of the week and time of day. Data are available for nearly every day of 2003-06, which is the reference period for this analysis." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kuhn, Peter & Fernando Lozano (2008): The expanding workweek? Understanding trends in long work hours among U.S. Men, 1979-2006. In: Journal of labor economics, Jg. 26, H. 2, S. 311-343.

Abstract

"According to U.S. Census and Current Population Survey (CPS) data, employed U.S. men are more likely to work more than 48 hours per week today than 25 years ago. Using 1979-2006 CPS data, we show that this increase was greatest in the 1980s, among highly educated, highly paid, and older men, and among workers paid on a salaried basis. We examine some possible explanations for these changes, including composition effects. Among salaried men, increases in long work hours were greatest in detailed occupations and industries with larger increases in residual wage inequality and slowly growing real compensation at 'standard' (40) hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Langot, Francois & Coralia Quintero Rojas (2008): European vs. American hours worked. Assessing the role of the extensive and intensive margins. (IZA discussion paper 3846), Bonn, 21 S.

Abstract

"Europeans have worked less than Americans since the 1970s. In this paper, we quantify the relative importance of the extensive and intensive margins of aggregate hours of market work on the observed differences. Our counterfactual exercises show that the two dimensions of the extensive margin, the employment rate and the participation rate, explain the most of the total-hours-gap between regions. Moreover, both ratios have similar weight. Conversely, the intensive margin, measured by the number of hours worked per employee, has the smallest role." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Langot, Francois & Coralia Quintero Rojas (2008): Explaining the evolution of hours worked and employment across OECD countries. An equilibrium search approach. (IZA discussion paper 3364), Bonn, 39 S.

Abstract

"Since 1960, the dynamics of the aggregate hours of market work exhibit dramatic differences across industrialized countries. Before 1980, these differences seem to come from the hours worked per employee (the intensive margin). However, since 1980 a notable feature of the data is that the divergence across countries responds to quantitatively important differences along the employment rate (the extensive margin). In this paper we develop an equilibrium matching model where both margins are endogenous. The model is rich enough to account for the behavior of the two margins of the aggregate hours when we include the observed heterogeneity across countries of both the taxes and the labor market institutions such as the unemployment benefits and the bargaining power. Because these findings come from on unified framework, they also give a strong support to the matching models." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Moen, Phyllis, Erin Kelly & Qinlei Huang (2008): Work, family and life-course fit. Does control over work time matter? In: Journal of vocational behavior, Jg. 73, H. 3, S. 414-425. DOI:10.1016/j.jvb.2008.08.002

Abstract

"This study moves from 'work-family' to a multi-dimensional 'life-course fit' construct (employees' cognitive assessments of resources, resource deficits, and resource demands), using a combined work-family, demands-control and ecology of the life course framing. It examined (1) impacts of job and home ecological systems on fit dimensions, and (2) whether control over work time predicted and mediated life-course fit outcomes. Using cluster analysis of survey data on a sample of 917 white-collar employees from Best Buy headquarters, we identified four job ecologies (corresponding to the job demands-job control model) and five home ecologies (theorizing an analogous home demands-home control model). Job and home ecologies predicted fit dimensions in an additive, not interactive, fashion. Employees' work-time control predicted every life-course fit dimension and partially mediated effects of job ecologies, organizational tenure, and job category." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Rosenthal, Stuart S. & William C. Strange (2008): Agglomeration and hours worked. In: The Review of Economics and Statistics, Jg. 90, H. 1, S. 105-118.

Abstract

"This paper establishes the existence of a previously overlooked relationship between agglomeration and hours worked. Among nonprofessionals, hours worked decrease with the density of workers in the same occupation. Among professionals, the relationship is positive. This relationship is stronger for the young than for the middle-aged. Moreover, young professional hours worked are especially sensitive to the presence of rivals. The paper shows that these patterns are consistent with the selection of hard workers into cities and with the high productivity of agglomerated labor. The behavior of young professionals is also consistent with the presence of keen rivalry in larger markets, a kind of urban rat race." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Saffer, Henry & Karine Lamiraud (2008): The effect of hours of work on social interaction. (NBER working paper 13743), Cambridge, Mass., 25 S. DOI:10.3386/w13743

Abstract

"Over time, increases in hours of work per capita have created the intuitively plausible notion that there is less time available to pursue social interactions. The specific question addressed in this paper is the effect of hours of work on social interaction. This is a difficult empirical question since omitted factors could increase both hours of work and social interaction. The approach taken in this paper utilizes an exogenous decline in hours of work in France due to a new employment law. The results clearly show that the employment law reduced hours of work but there is no evidence that the extra hours went to increased social interactions. Although hours of work are not an important determinant of social interaction, human capital is found to be important. The effect of human capital, as measured by education and age, is positive for membership groups but negative for visiting relatives and friends. Also, contrary to expectations, there are no important differences in the determinants of social interaction by gender, marital status or parent status. Finally, a comparison between France and the US show that the response to human capital and other variables are much the same in both nations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Aguiar, Mark & Erik Hurst (2007): Measuring trends in leisure. The allocation of time over five decades. In: The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Jg. 122, H. 3, S. 969-1006. DOI:10.1162/qjec.122.3.969

Abstract

"In this paper, we use five decades of time-use surveys to document trends in the allocation of time within the United States. We find that a dramatic increase in leisure time lies behind the relatively stable number of market hours worked between 1965 and 2003. Specifically, using a variety of definitions for leisure, we show that leisure for men increased by roughly six to nine hours per week (driven by a decline in market work hours) and for women by roughly four to eight hours per week (driven by a decline in home production work hours). Lastly, we document a growing inequality in leisure that is the mirror image of the growing inequality of wages and expenditures, making welfare calculation based solely on the latter series incomplete." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Altonji, Joseph G. & Emiko Usui (2007): Work hours, wages, and vacation leave. In: Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Jg. 60, H. 3, S. 408-428. DOI:10.1177/001979390706000306

Abstract

"Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and the Health and Retirement Study, we provide a set of facts about vacation leave and its relationship to hours worked, hours constraints, wage rates, worker characteristics, spouse's vacation leave, labor market experience, job tenure, occupation, industry, and labor market conditions. We show that on average vacation time taken rises 1 to 1 with paid vacation but varies around it, that annual hours worked fall by about 1 full time week with every week of paid vacation, that the gap between time taken and time paid for is higher for women, union members, and government workers, that hourly wage rates have a strong positive relationship with paid vacation weeks both in the cross section and across jobs, and that nonwage compensation is positively related to vacation weeks. We provide evidence that vacation leave is determined by broad employer policy rather than by negotiation between the worker and firm. In particular, it is strongly related to job seniority but depends very little on labor market experience, and for job changers it is only weakly related to the amount of vacation on the previous job." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Anxo, Dominique, Lennart Flood, Letizia Mencarini, Ariane Pailhe, Anne Solaz & Maria Letizia Tanturri (2007): Time allocation between work and family over the life-cycle. A comparative gender analysis of Italy, France, Sweden and the United States. (IZA discussion paper 3193), Bonn, 38 S.

Abstract

"This article analyses the extent to which changes in household composition over the life course affect the gender division of labour. It identifies and analyses cross-country disparities between France, Italy, Sweden and United States, using most recent data available from the Time Use National Surveys. We focus on gender differences in the allocation of time between market work, domestic work and leisure over the life-cycle. In order to map the life-cycle, we distinguish between nine key cross-country comparable life stages according to age and family structure such as exiting parental home, union formation, parenthood, and retiring from work. By using appropriate regression techniques (Tobit with selection, Tobit and OLS), we show large discrepancies in the gender division of labour at the different life stages. This gender gap exists in all countries at any stage of the life course, but is usually smaller at the two ends of the age distribution, and larger with parenthood. Beyond social norms, the impact of parenthood on time allocation varies across countries, being smaller in those where work-family balance policies are more effective and traditionally well-established." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Barkume, Anthony J. (2007): Some new evidence on overtime use, total job compensation, and wage rates. (BLS working paper 402), Washington, 30 S.

Abstract

"This paper is a replication of research reported by Steven Trejo in the 1991 American Economic Review. Trejo used labor force data from the seventies to assess the relevance of two contrasting views of the impact of overtime pay regulation. This paper reports research using a recent representative sample of U.S. private industry jobs that includes employer-reported measures of usual annual hours of overtime work and comprehensive measures of employer costs for job compensation. Comparisons are made between a set of jobs likely to be subject to U.S. overtime pay regulation-jobs paid hourly on 40 hour a week schedules-with another set of jobs that can offer overtime but are not likely to be subject to Federal overtime requirements-jobs on reduced hour schedules. The main findings of the research are: (1) higher wage rates are associated with a lower incidence of overtime work among the set of jobs with 40 hour work schedules, but not among the set of jobs with reduced hour schedules (2) in jobs using overtime work, more usual overtime work is associated with lower wage rates among the jobs with 40 hour work schedules, but not among the jobs on reduced hour schedules (3) higher 'quasi-fixed' job compensation, such as employer health insurance costs, is associated with a higher incidence of overtime use. The paper also discusses some of the difficulties of interpreting these statistical results in the context of the labor market models considered by Trejo." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Burda, Michael C., Daniel S. Hamermesh & Philippe Weil (2007): Total work, gender and social norms. (IZA discussion paper 2705), Bonn, 45 S.

Abstract

"Using time-diary data from 25 countries, we demonstrate that there is a negative relationship between real GDP per capita and the female-male difference in total work time per day - the sum of work for pay and work at home. In rich northern countries on four continents, including the United States, there is no difference - men and women do the same amount of total work. This latter fact has been presented before by several sociologists for a few rich countries; but our survey results show that labor economists, macroeconomists, the general public and sociologists are unaware of it and instead believe that women perform more total work. The facts do not arise from gender differences in the price of time (as measured by market wages), as women's total work is further below men's where their relative wages are lower. Additional tests using U.S. and German data show that they do not arise from differences in marital bargaining, as gender equality is not associated with marital status; nor do they stem from family norms, since most of the variance in the gender total work difference is due to within-couple differences. We offer a theory of social norms to explain the facts. The social-norm explanation is better able to account for within-education group and within-region gender differences in total work being smaller than inter-group differences. It is consistent with evidence using the World Values Surveys that female total work is relatively greater than men's where both men and women believe that scarce jobs should be offered to men first." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Connelly, Rachel & Jean Kimmel (2007): The role of nonstandard work hours in maternal caregiving for young children. (IZA discussion paper 3093), Bonn, 56 S.

Abstract

"This paper examines the effect of the timing of mothers' daily work schedules on the amount of maternal caregiving she engages in on that same day. We look at total caregiving time on weekdays, early morning and evening caregiving time on weekdays, and total caregiving time on weekends. Since the timing of employment is, in part, a choice made by mothers, which is sometimes explicitly related to caregiving concerns, we argue that the decision to work nonstandard hours must be modeled jointly with its effect on caregiving time. Using an endogenous switching model, we examine the importance of demographic, spatial, and economic factors in mothers' time choices distinctly by nonstandard work status. We find that the effect of additional children in the household has a larger effect on caregiving time for standard time workers than nonstandard workers, both weekdays and weekend. Especially important is the additional hours of evening care given by those with a young school-aged child if the mother works standard hours only, but no additional hours of evening care given by those with a young school-age child if the mother works any time after 6 pm. Being married reduces early morning and evening caregiving only if the mother is working in the early morning or the evening. In households with mothers working standard hours only, being married has no effect on mothers' caregiving time. Finally, higher working mothers' wages are associated with increased caregiving minutes both during the week and on the weekend only for those mothers who perform some of their paid employment during nonstandard hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Cowling, Keith & Rattanasuda Poolsombat (2007): Advertising and labour supply. Why do Americans work such long hours? (Warwick economic research paper 789), Coventry, 38 S.

Abstract

"Americans are working much longer hours in the paid labour market than workers in Western Europe. Much of the debate focuses on whether this is the result of voluntary worker choice or whether this is a decision imposed on workers by their employers. This paper shows that American hours of work have become more or less stabilised as a result of the rising intensity of advertising in the U.S.: advertising may raise the desired amount of marketed goods and services for which workers find it necessary to work long hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Edlund, Jonas (2007): The work-family time squeeze. Conflicting demands of paid and unpaid work among working couples in 29 countries. In: International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Jg. 48, H. 6, S. 451-480. DOI:10.1177/0020715207083338

Abstract

"The article analyzes work-family balance among working couples in 29 countries using data from ISSP 2002. Arguments derived from theories on family regimes and modernization are tested. The results indicate that respondents can be categorized into three clusters. The first comprises those having a work-family balance; the second, those having an occupational work-overload; and the third, those having a dual work-overload (i.e. those experiencing too strong demands from both work and family responsibilities). Across countries, cluster sizes vary tremendously. The results indicate that the wealth of a country is strongly associated with the likelihood of achieving a balanced work-family situation. Although the overall probability increases with economic wealth, the relative disadvantage for women compared to men persists. The female disadvantage is mainly a higher risk of occupational overload in the rich countries, whereas in poorer countries there is a higher risk of being in a dual work-overload situation. Among the wealthy industrialized democracies, a balanced work-family situation is more common in the familialist German-linguistic country grouping, followed by the Nordic countries characterized by de-familialization. Market-oriented countries perform less well. Within the perspective of the theory on family regimes, the similarity between the familialist and the de-familialist regimes is an unexpected result." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Eldridge, Lucy P. & Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia (2007): Are those who bring work home really working longer hours? Implications for BLS productivity measures. (BLS working paper 406), Washington, 48 S.

Abstract

"An ongoing debate surrounding BLS productivity data is that official labor productivity measures may be overstating productivity growth because of an increase in unmeasured hours worked outside the traditional workplace. This paper uses both the ATUS and May CPS Work Schedules and Work at Home Supplements to determine whether the number of hours worked by nonfarm business employees are underestimated and increasing over time due to unmeasured hours worked at home. We find that 8 - 9 percent of nonfarm business employees bring some work home from the workplace. In addition, those who bring work home report working longer hours than those who work exclusively in a workplace, resulting in a 0.8 - 1.1 percent understatement of measured hours worked. However, we find no conclusive evidence that productivity trends were biased over the 1997-2005 period due to work brought home from the workplace." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

MacKenzie, Robert, Rob Perret, Suzan Lewis, Jennifer Tomlinson, Steve Fleetwood, Gráinne Collins, Richenda Gambles, Pascale Peters, Caroline Gatrell, Paul Ransome, Tanja van der Lippe, Rhona Rapoport, Jean Gardiner, Janet Smithson, Chris Forde, Mark Stuart, Ian Greenwood & Cath Sullivan, MacKenzie, Robert, Rob Perret, Suzan Lewis, Jennifer Tomlinson, Steve Fleetwood, Gráinne Collins, Richenda Gambles, Pascale Peters, Caroline Gatrell, Paul Ransome, Tanja van der Lippe, Rhona Rapoport, Jean Gardiner, Janet Smithson, Chris Forde, Mark Stuart, Ian Greenwood & Cath Sullivan (sonst. bet. Pers.) (2007): Work-life balance. In: The international journal of human resource management, Jg. 18, H. 3, S. 351-489.

Abstract

Die Beiträge des Sonderhefts zu 'Work-Life-Balance' beleuchten verschiedene Aspekte dieses Konzepts. Das Konzept der 'Work-Life-Balance' wird kritisch hinterfragt, und Annahmen, die ihm zugrunde liegen, sowie Probleme, die mit Work-Life-Balance-Diskursen und -Praktiken verbunden sind, werden herausgearbeitet. Die Reichweite und die Grenzen des Konzepts werden anhand empirischer Studien illustriert. Deren inhaltliche Schwerpunkte liegen auf Heim- und Telearbeit, auf dem Geschlechterverhältnis sowie auf dem Berufsausstieg älterer Arbeitnehmer. (IAB)

Zitatform

Golden, Lonnie & Tesfayi Gebreselassie (2007): Overemployment mismatches: the preference for fewer hours. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 130, H. 4, S. 18-37.

Abstract

"The preference of workers for having either more or fewer hours of work has remained virtually unchanged since 1985; rates of overemployment differ considerably by job type, workweek length, income level, gender, and stage of workers' life cycle." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kimmel, Jean & Rachel Connelly (2007): Mothers' time choices. Caregiving, leisure, home production, and paid work. In: The Journal of Human Resources, Jg. 42, H. 3, S. 643-681.

Abstract

"Using data from the 2003 and 2004 American Time Use Survey, we study the role that socioeconomic factors play in mothers' time choices. We estimate a four-equation system in which the dependent variables are the minutes used in home production, active leisure, market work, and child caregiving. Our results show that mothers' caregiving time increases with the number of children, decreases with age of the child, and increases with the price of child care. We also find a substantial positive wage elasticity for caregiving time, while both leisure and home production time declines with increased wages." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

McMenamin, Terence M. (2007): A time to work: recent trends in shift work and flexible schedules. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 130, H. 12, S. 3-15.

Abstract

"The traditional work schedule for an American employee has long been 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. However, an examination of data from the Work Schedules and Work at Home survey, a special supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS) conducted in May 2004, reveals that substantial proportions of workers' schedules do not fit this paradigm. For instance, nearly one-third of wage and salary workers have flexible schedules on their primary jobs, meaning that they can vary their beginning and ending hours; about one-fifth work a shift other than a regular daytime shift on their primary job; and a slightly smaller proportion works on Saturday, Sunday, or both. The use of alternate shifts and flexible work schedules is often determined by the demands of the industry, rather than by workers' preferences. However, schedule considerations and flexibility are influential factors in the career-planning and labor market decisions of many workers. The Work Schedules and Work at Home survey obtained information on individuals' work schedules or shifts and on whether they did any job-related work at home. The data presented in this article pertain to work schedules and alternate shifts. Because of the high prevalence of both shift work and flexitime among part-time workers, the article analyzes total employment, including that of both full- and part-time workers in most cases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Shockley, Kristen M. & Tammy D. Allen (2007): When flexibility helps: Another look at the availability of flexible work arrangements and work-family conflict. In: Journal of vocational behavior, Jg. 71, H. 3, S. 479-493. DOI:10.1016/j.jvb.2007.08.006

Abstract

"Despite the positive press given to flexible work arrangements (FWA), empirical research investigating the link between the availability of these policies and work-family conflict is largely equivocal. The purpose of the present study was to begin to reconcile these mixed results through more precise measurement and the examination of moderators. Using a sample of employed women, we found that FWA relate more highly to work interference with family (WIF) than to family interference with work (FIW) and that temporal flexibility (flextime) has a stronger relationship with WIF than does spatial flexibility (flexplace). Additionally, we found family responsibility significantly moderated these relationships, such that the relationship was stronger for those with greater family responsibility. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Tomlinson, Jennifer (2007): Employment regulation, welfare and gender regimes. A comparative analysis of womens's working-time patterns and work-life balance in the UK and the US. In: The international journal of human resource management, Jg. 18, H. 3, S. 401-415. DOI:10.1080/09585190601167466

Abstract

Der Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über Arbeitszeitmuster erwerbstätiger Frauen und Mütter in den beiden neoliberalen Wohlfahrtsstaaten Großbritannien und den USA. Zur Erklärung der länderspezifischen Unterschiede zwischen Voll- und Teilzeit-Quoten erwerbstätiger Mütter wird ein Ansatz entwickelt, der wohlfahrtsstaatliche Regelungen, Spielarten des Kapitalismus und das Geschlechterverhältnis einbezieht. Vor diesem Hintergrund werden die institutionellen Strukturen in beiden Ländern verglichen, insbesondere die Regulierung von Vollzeit- und Teilzeitarbeit sowie der Sozialeistungen. Hierdurch werden unterschiedliche positive bzw. negative Anreizsysteme für Teilzeitarbeit erwerbstätiger Mütter geschaffen, wobei Teilzeitarbeit als Möglichkeit betrachtet wird, eine bessere Vereinbarkeit zwischen Beruf und Familie zu finden. Für Großbritannien wird eine Inkonsistenz zwischen dem Ziel stärkerer Frauenerwerbsbeteiligung und den mangelnden institutionellen Strukturen, um dieses Ziel zu erreichen, herausgearbeitet. Fehlende Kinderbetreuungsmöglichkeiten und die schlechte Qualität von Teilzeitarbeitsplätzen sind typisch für Großbritannien. Für die USA werden weniger Inkonsistenzen festgestellt. Hier wird ein striktes neoliberales Modell verfolgt, in dem Vollzeitarbeit als Standard gilt, auch für erwerbstätige Mütter. (IAB)

Zitatform

Bloom, Nick, Tobias Kretschmer & John Van Reenen (2006): Work-life balance, management practices and productivity. London, 53 S.

Abstract

"A debate is raging all over the developed world about quality of work issues. As unemployment has fallen in the US and UK, attention has focused more on the quality rather than quantity of jobs. This has sharpened as women's participation has risen and issues of work-life balance and family-friendly policies have risen up the political agenda. This paper has tried to shed some empirical light on these debates. We characterized two opposing views of globalization entitled the pessimistic (or trade off) and the optimistic (or win-win) view. The pessimists argue that 'savage neoliberalism' encapsulated by tougher product market competition, globalization and 'Anglo-Saxon' managerial policies are undesirable for workers. Although these forces will raise productivity, they come at the expense of misery for workers in the form of poor work-life balance (long hours, job insecurity, intense and unsatisfying work). The more optimistic Human Resource Management literature argues that better work-life balance will, in fact, improve productivity (and even profitability) and employers are mistakenly failing to treat their workers as assets and implement better work-life balance policies. In short, we find evidence for a hybrid view between these two extremes. Using originally collected data, we show that we have a useful firm specific measure of WLB. The pessimists' argument that 'Anglo-Saxon' management practices are negatively associated with worse WLB is rejected - there is a positive association as suggested by the optimists. Similarly, the pessimists' theory that competition is inevitably bad for workers' WLB is also rejected: there is no significantly negative relationship. Larger firms - which are typically more globalized - also have better WLB practices on average. However, the view that WLB will improve productivity is also rejected: there is no relationship between productivity and WLB once we control for good management. Neither is there support for the pessimists' prediction that WLB is negatively associated with productivity. Finally, looking at US multinationals based in Europe we find an intriguing result that these firms appear to bring over their superior US management practices with them to Europe but then adopt more worker-friendly European work-life balance practices. Why US firms internationalize their management practices but localize their work-life balance practices appears to be due to a combination of regulations and social norms, an area of ongoing research." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Burda, Michael C., Daniel S. Hamermesh & Philippe Weil (2006): The distribution of total work in the EU and US. (IZA discussion paper 2270), Bonn, 84 S.

Abstract

"Using two time-diary data sets each for Germany, Italy the Netherlands and the U.S. from 1985-2003, we demonstrate that Americans work more than Europeans: 1) in the market; 2) in total (market and home production) - there is no one-for-one tradeoff across countries in total work; 3) at unusual times of the day and on weekends. In addition, gender differences in total work within a given country are significantly smaller than variation across countries and time. We conclude that some of the transatlantic differences could reflect inferior equilibria that are generated by social norms and externalities. While an important outlet for total work, home production by females appears very sensitive to tax rates in the G-7 countries. We adapt the theory of home production to account for fixed costs of market work and adduce evidence that they, in contrast to other relative costs, vary significantly across countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hamermesh, Daniel S. (2006): The time and timing costs of market work, and their implications for retirement. (IZA discussion paper 2030), Bonn, 38 S.

Abstract

"Retirement ages among older Americans have only recently begun to increase after a precipitous fifty-year decline. Early retirement may result from incentives provided by retirement systems; but it may also result from the rigidities imposed by market work schedules. Using the American Time Use Survey of 2003 and 2004, I first examine whether additional market work is neutral with respect to the mix of non-market activities. The estimates indicate that there are fixed time costs of remaining in the labor market that alter the pattern of non-market activities, reducing leisure time and mostly increasing time devoted to household production. Market work also alters the timing of a fixed amount of non-market activities during the day, away from the schedule chosen when timing constraints imposed by market work do not exist. All of these effects are mitigated by higher family income, presumably because higher-income people can purchase market substitutes that enable them to overcome the fixed time costs of market work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kelly, Erin L. & Alexandra Kalev (2006): Managing flexible work arrangements in US organizations. Formalized discretion or 'a right to ask'. In: Socio-economic review, Jg. 4, H. 3, S. 379-416. DOI:10.1093/ser/mwl001

Abstract

"Scholars of the American workplace agree that the employment relationship has changed in significant ways but disagree about whether workplaces are now best characterized as 'legalized' or 'restructured', a designation that implies a market orientation in the treatment of workers. We investigate whether a new set of employment practices, namely flexible work arrangements (FWA) such as flextime, compressed work weeks, telecommuting and reduced-hours schedules, are administered using the principles and practices associated with either or both management regimes. Our analyses of in-depth interviews with human resources managers from 41 diverse organizations show that most organizations have formalized FWA with written policies, but these policies institutionalize managerial discretion rather than creating outright rights for employees. Even when organizations write a formal written policy, FWA are managed as negotiated perks available to valued workers if and when managers choose to allow them, as suggested by the restructured workplace regime. We argue that this 'formalized discretion' explains the low utilization and unequal access to FWA found in previous studies. These findings suggest the need to reconsider the theoretical link between formalization and employees' rights in the workplace." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Kuhn, Peter & Fernando Lozano (2006): The expanding workweek? Understanding trends in long work hours among U.S. men, 1979-2004. (IZA discussion paper 1924), Bonn, 50 S.

Abstract

"After declining for most of the century, the share of employed American men regularly working more than 50 hours per week began to increase around 1970. This trend has been especially pronounced among highly educated, high-wage, salaried, and older men. Using two decades of CPS data, we rule out a number of factors, including business cycles, changes in observed labor force characteristics, and changes in the level of men's real hourly earnings as primary explanations of this trend. Instead we argue that increases in salaried men's marginal incentives to supply hours beyond 40 accounted for the recent rise. Since these increases were accompanied by a rough constancy in real earnings at 40 hours, they can be interpreted as a compensated wage increase." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Pissarides, Christopher A. (2006): Unemployment and hours of work. The North Atlantic divide revisited. (CEP discussion paper 757), London, 51 S.

Abstract

"The author examines the dynamic evolutions of unemployment, hours of work and the service share since the war in the United States and Europe. The theoretical model brings together all three and emphasizes technological growth. Computations show that the very low unemployment in Europe in the 1960s was due to the high productivity growth associated with technological catch-up. Productivity also played a role in the dynamics of hours but a full explanation for the fast rise of service employment and the big fall in aggregate hours needs further research. Taxation has played a role but results are mixed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Ramey, Valerie A. & Neville Francis (2006): A century of work and leisure. (NBER working paper 12264), Cambridge, Mass., 48 S. DOI:10.3386/w12264

Abstract

"Has leisure increased over the last century? Standard measures of hours worked suggest that it has. In this paper, we develop a comprehensive measure of non-leisure hours that includes market work, home production, commuting and schooling for the last 105 years. We also present empirical and theoretical arguments for a definition of 'per capita' that encompasses the entire population. The new measures reveal a number of interesting 20th Century trends. First, 70 percent of the decline in hours worked has been offset by an increase in hours spent in school. Second, contrary to conventional wisdom, average hours spent in home production are actually slightly higher now than they were in the early part of the 20th Century. Finally, leisure per capita is approximately the same now as it was in 1900." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Vandenbroucke, Guillaume (2006): A model of the trends in hours. (IEPR Working paper 05.40), Los Angeles, CA, 23 S.

Abstract

"During the first half of the 20th century the workweek in the United States declined, and its distribution across wage deciles narrowed. The hypothesis proposed is twofold. First, technological progress, through the rise of wages and the decreasing cost of recreation, made it possible for the average US worker to afford more time off from work. Second, changes in the wage distribution explain the shift in the hours distribution. A general equilibrium model is built to explore whether such mechanisms can, quantitatively, account for the observations. The model is calibrated to match moments of the US economy in 1900. It predicts the trends in hours closely, from 1900 to 1950. Counterfactual experiments show that the rise in wages is the main contributor to the decline in hours. The decline in the price of leisure goods explain 6% of the total decline in hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Alesina, Alberto, Edward Glaeser & Bruce Sacerdote (2005): Work and leisure in the U.S. and Europe. Why so different? (NBER working paper 11278), Cambridge, Mass., 74 S. DOI:10.3386/w11278

Abstract

"Americans average 25.1 working hours per person in working age per week, but the Germans average 18.6 hours. The average American works 46.2 weeks per year, while the French average 40 weeks per year. Why do western Europeans work so much less than Americans? Recent work argues that these differences result from higher European tax rates, but the vast empirical labor supply literature suggests that tax rates can explain only a small amount of the differences in hours between the U.S. and Europe. Another popular view is that these differences are explained by long-standing European 'culture,' but Europeans worked more than Americans as late as the 1960s. In this paper, we argue that European labor market regulations, advocated by unions in declining European industries who argued 'work less, work all' explain the bulk of the difference between the U.S. and Europe. These policies do not seem to have increased employment, but they may have had a more society-wide influence on leisure patterns because of a social multiplier where the returns to leisure increase as more people are taking longer vacations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Auray, Stéphane & Samuel Danthine (2005): Bargaining frictions and hours worked. (IZA discussion paper 1722), Bonn, 36 S.

Abstract

"A matching model with labor/leisure choice and bargaining frictions is used to explain (i) differences in GDP per hour and GDP per capita, (ii) differences in employment, (iii) differences in the proportion of part-time work across countries. The model predicts that the higher the level of rigidity in wages and hours the lower are GDP per capita, employment, part-time work and hours worked, but the higher is GDP per hours worked. In addition, it predicts that a country with a high level of rigidity in wages and hours and a high level of income taxation has higher GDP per hour and lower GDP per capita than a country with less rigidity and a lower level of taxation. This is due mostly to a lower level of employment. In contrast, a country with low levels of rigidity in hour and in wage setting but with a higher level of income taxation has a lower GDP per capita and a higher GDP per hour than the economy with low rigidity and low taxation, because while the level of employment! is similar in both economies, the share of part-time work is larger." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Bender, Keith A., Susan M. Donohue & John S. Heywood (2005): Job satisfaction and gender segregation. In: Oxford economic papers, Jg. 57, H. 3, S. 479-496. DOI:10.1093/oep/gpi015

Abstract

"Using data from the US, the determinants of overall job satisfaction are estimated as part of explaining 'the paradox of the contented female worker'. Confirming earlier studies women report higher job satisfaction than men and higher job satisfaction in workplaces dominated by women workers. The US data allow us to demonstrate that men and women value job flexibility differently and that once differences in the extent of job flexibility are accounted for, the gender composition of the workplace plays no role in determining the job satisfaction of women. Thus, women in female dominated workplaces may report higher job satisfaction because they value job flexibility and so choose to dominate the workplaces that provide job flexibility." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Berthold, Norbert & Jupp Zenzen (2005): Wachstumsschwäche in Europa - Wege aus der Stagnation. (Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Beiträge des Lehrstuhls für Volkswirtschaftslehre, Wirtschaftsordnung und Sozialpolitik 84), Würzburg, 28 S.

Abstract

Der Beitrag untersucht, wie sich die Wirtschaft der großen europäischen Staaten im Vergleich zur USA entwickelt hat, und weshalb die Wachstumsdynamik in Europa und insbesondere Deutschland geringer ist als in den USA. Die Analyse konzentriert sich auf die Entwicklung des Bruttoinlandsprodukt pro Kopf als Indikator für Wohlstand und wirtschaftliche Dynamik. Die Bestandteile des Pro-Kopf-Wachstums werden analyisiert: Das Wachstum der Arbeitsstunden pro Kopf als Aggregat des Wachstums der geleisteten Arbeitsstunden pro Erwerbstätigem, der Beschäftigungsquote und der Erwerbsquote sowie das Produktivitätswachstum als Aggregat des gewichteten Wachstums der Kapitalausstattung und des TFP-Wachstums. Die Analyse zeigt, dass die Zahl der geleisteten Arbeitsstunden in Europa und in Deutschland durchweg geringer ist, als in den USA. Fazit: "Die Gründe der deutschen Wachstumsmisere sind bekannt. Die Deutschen arbeiten zu wenig. Kurze Arbeitszeiten, eine hohe Arbeitslosigkeit und ein immer ausgeprägteres Missverhältnis von Lebensarbeitszeit zu Lebenserwartung belasten das Wirtschaftswachstum. Das Produktivitätswachstum ist rückläufig, schuld ist vor allem der überregulierte Dienstleistungssektor." Als Abhilfe wird eine Erhöhung der Lebensarbeitszeit gefordert, insbesondere eine Verkürzung der Ausbildungs- und Studiendauer und die Heraufsetzung des Renteneintrittsalters. Weiterhin wird für eine Ankurbelung der Produktivität in den "traditionellen" Industrien plädiert, für einen Umbau des Steuer- und Sozialsystems sowie für mehr Wettbewerb und weniger Regulierung auf allen Märkten. (IAB2)

Zitatform

Bertram, Hans, Wiebke Rösler & Nancy Ehlert (2005): Nachhaltige Familienpolitik. Zukunftssicherung durch einen Dreiklang von Zeitpolitik, finanzieller Transferpolitik und Infrastrukturpolitik. Gutachten. Berlin, 54 S.

Abstract

Nachhaltige Familienpolitik begründet ihren Anspruch auf der Gestaltung der Rahmenbedingungen familiären Lebens mit dem Grundsatz, zukünftigen Generationen die gleichen Chancen zur Gestaltung eigener Lebensvorstellungen und Ziele zu ermöglichen, wie das für die jetzt aktive Generation möglich ist. Als Ziele einer nachhaltigen Familienpolitik wird die Sicherung einer ausreichenden Kinderzahl genannt, um der Alterung der Gesellschaft entgegenzuwirken, und die Integration der Frauen in das Erwerbsleben, um einem antizipierten Mangel an Fachkräften entgegenwirken zu können. Diese ökonomische Argumentation wird erweitert um einige demographische und familiensoziologische Argumente, um deutlich zu machen, dass eine nachhaltige Familienpolitik auf einem Mix aus Infrastrukturpolitik, Zeitpolitik und finanzieller Transferpolitik aufbauen muss, um Rahmenbedingungen zu schaffen, die es jungen Erwachsenen ermöglichen, ihre Zukunft gemeinsam und gemeinsam mit Kindern zu planen und zu realisieren. Der Vergleich zwischen Deutschland und den USA zeigt, dass sowohl die Ausbildung als auch die erreichte Berufsposition die beiden zentralen Faktoren für die individuelle Entscheidung sind, ohne Kinder zu leben. Personen mit der höchsten Qualifikation und einer hohen Karriereorientierung entscheiden sich zunehmend für ein Leben ohne Kinder. Die deutliche Mehrheit der befragten Mütter präferiert ein Modell, das ihnen die Gestaltung der Erwerbstätigkeit auch in Abhängigkeit vom Lebensalter der Kinder ermöglicht, um auch die Bedürfnisse der Kinder in die Zeitstrukturen des Erwerbslebens mit einbauen zu können. Die subjektiven Entscheidungen für unterschiedliche Lebensstile müssen von Staat und Gesellschaft akzeptiert werden. Eine nachhaltige Familienpolitik sollte auf die unterschiedlichen Präferenzen berufs- und familienorientierter Frauen mit unterschiedlichen Optionen reagieren. (IAB)

Zitatform

Bowles, Samuel & Yongjin Park (2005): Emulation, inequality, and work hours. Was Thorsten Veblen right? In: The economic journal, Jg. 115, H. 507, S. F397-F412.

Abstract

"We investigate the manner in which a desire to emulate the rich influences individuals' allocation of time between labour and leisure, greater inequality inducing longer work hours as a result. Data on work hours in ten countries over the period 1963-98 show that greater inequality is indeed associated longer work hours. These 'Veblen effects' are large and the estimates are robust using country fixed effects and other specifications. Because consumption inequality is a public bad, a social welfare optimum cannot be implemented by a flat tax on consumption but may be accomplished by more complicated (progressive) consumption taxes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Erler, Gisela (2005): Work-Life-Balance für Fach- und Führungskräfte. In: Personalführung, Jg. 38, H. 1, S. 48-55.

Abstract

"Beim Thema Work-Life-Balance für Fach- und Führungskräfte hat sich in der Wirtschaft in den letzten Jahren zwar manches bewegt, doch gleichzeitig herrschen noch immer Ambivalenz und Skepsis. Mitunter scheine es sogar so, als verlangsame sich das Tempo des Fortschritts, schreibt die Autorin in ihrem Beitrag. Dabei ist das Thema Work-Life-Balance für sie unmittelbar mit dem der Förderung von Frauen in Führungspositionen verknüpft. Nach einem kurzen Überblick über die wichtigsten Argumente für Reformen fragt die Autorin nach den impliziten und expliziten Gründen für die gegenwärtige Stagnation, nach verlässlichen und absehbaren Trends, empirischen Belegen und zentralen Herausforderungen für die Personalarbeit." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Freeman, Richard B. & Ronald Schettkat (2005): Marketization of household production and the EU-US gap in work. In: Economic policy, Jg. 20, H. 41, S. 6-50. DOI:10.1111/j.1468-0327.2005.00132.x

Abstract

Ausgangspunkt des Beitrags sind die Unterschiede zwischen den USA und der EU hinsichtlich der Beschäftigungsquoten und geleisteten Arbeitsstunden. Das höhere Arbeitsvolumen in den USA wird auf die höhere Vermarktlichung der Haus- und Familienarbeit (Kochen und Putzen, Kinder- und Altenbetreuung) zurückgeführt. Zeitbudgetstudien zeigen, dass in den USA weniger Zeit für Hausarbeit und mehr Zeit für Erwerbsarbeit aufgewendet wird. Da für Hausarbeit vor allem Frauen zuständig sind, betrifft dieser Unterschied vor allem Frauen. Die Erwerbsbeteiligung von Frauen kann durch eine Politik gefördert werden, die es Frauen erleichtert, Hausarbeit durch Erwerbsarbeit zu ersetzen und für die Hausarbeit Diensteistungen in Anspruch zu nehmen. (IAB)

Zitatform

Greenwood, Jeremy & Guillaume Vandenbroucke (2005): Hours worked. Long-run trends. (NBER working paper 11629), Cambridge, Mass., 16 S. DOI:10.3386/w11629

Abstract

"For 200 years the average number of hours worked per worker declined, both in the market place and at home. Technological progress is the engine of such transformation. Three mechanisms are stressed: (i) The rise in real wages and its corresponding wealth effect; (ii) The enhanced value of time off from work, due to the advent of time-using leisure goods; (iii) The reduced need for housework, due to the introduction of time-saving appliances. These mechanisms are incorporated into a model of household production. The notion of Edgeworth-Pareto complementarity/substitutability is key to the analysis. Numerical examples link theory and data. This note has been prepared for The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics, 2nd edition, edited by Lawrence E. Blume and Steven N. Durlauf (London: Palgrave Macmillan)." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hewlett, Sylvia Ann & Carolyn Buck Luce (2005): Off-Ramps and On-Ramps: Keeping talented women on the road to success. In: Harvard Business Review, Jg. 83, H. 3, S. 43-54.

Abstract

"Most professional women step off the career fast track at some point. With children to raise, elderly parents to care for, and other pulls on their time, these women are confronted with one off-ramp after another. When they feel pushed at the same time by long hours and unsatisfying work, the decision to leave becomes even easier. But woe to the woman who intends for that exit to be temporary. The on-ramps for professional women to get back on track are few and far between, the authors confirm. Their new survey research reveals for the first time the extent of the problem - what percentage of highly qualified women leave work and for how long, what obstacles they face coming back, and what price they pay for their time-outs. And what are the implications for corporate America? One thing at least seems clear: As market and economic factors align in ways guaranteed to make talent constraints and skill shortages huge issues again, employers must learn to reverse this brain drain. Like it or not, large numbers of highly qualified, committed women need to take time out of the workplace. The trick is to help them maintain connections that will allow them to reenter the workforce without being marginalized for the rest of their lives. Strategies for building such connections include creating reduced-hour jobs, providing flexibility in the workday and in the arc of a career, removing the stigma of taking time off, refusing to burn bridges, offering outlets for altruism, and nurturing women's ambition. An HBR Special Report, available online at www.womenscareersreport.hbr.org, presents detailed findings of the survey." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Martinez-Granado, Maite (2005): Testing labour supply and hours constraints. In: Labour economics, Jg. 12, H. 3, S. 321-343. DOI:10.1016/j.labeco.2003.11.007

Abstract

"This paper provides empirical evidence that, at a given wage, individuals cannot freely choose the number of hours they work. The novelty relative to the existing literature (e.g. [Altonji, J., Paxson, C., 1986. Job characteristics and hours of work. In: Ehrenberg, R. (Ed.), Research in Labor Economics, vol. 8. Westview Press, Greenwich, 1-55]) is twofold. We use the US data on prime age males from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth and we account for endogenous switching between jobs. Our results are: (i) the variance of the change in hours worked is more than six times higher for movers than for stayers; (ii) the intertemporal labour supply elasticity is positive and significant for movers and zero for stayers. This is further evidence for the presence of hours constraints. One important implication is that estimates of the labour supply elasticity that ignore these constraints are biased." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

McCrate, Elaine (2005): Flexible hours, workplace authority, and compensating wage differentials in the US. In: Feminist economics, Jg. 11, H. 1, S. 11-40. DOI:10.1080/1354570042000332588

Abstract

"The theory of compensating differentials suggests that workers with flexible schedules will earn less than other workers. Some authors have also contended that the concentration of women in jobs with flexible hours explains a significant part of the gender pay gap. This paper uses data from the US subset of the Comparative Project in Class Analysis to test these hypotheses. These data first indicate that, contrary to popular wisdom, women workers do not have more flexible schedules than men. Second, the really striking differential is by race: black workers have much more rigid schedules than white workers. Third, workers with more authority at the workplace typically have more flexibility than subordinate workers. Finally, the data show that any compensating differentials for flexible hours are small and are offset by returns to workplace authority." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Abraham, Katharine G. & Susan N. Houseman (2004): Work and retirement plans among older Americans. (Upjohn Institute staff working paper 2004-105), Kalamazoo, 38 S.

Abstract

"We compare older workers' plans for work and retirement with their subsequent work and retirement outcomes using panel data from the Health and Retirement Study. Among those with retirement plans, about half indicate they would like to cut back on their work hours or otherwise change the type of work they do prior to, or instead of, fully retiring. Yet, the fraction that follows through on these alternative plans is dramatically lower than the fraction that realizes plans to stop working. Our analysis shows that individuals who likely would need to change jobs in order to reduce their work hours are much less likely to have plans to reduce hours and, conditional on having such plans, are much less likely to follow through on them. Instead, a large fraction of these individuals stop working entirely. Our findings suggest that older workers may face substantial barriers to job change, and we conclude with a discussion of potential policy implications." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Allen, Steven G., Robert L. Clark & Linda S. Ghent (2004): Phasing into retirement. In: Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Jg. 58, H. 1, S. 112-127.

Abstract

"To help workers navigate the transition from work to retirement more effectively, employers have been launching phased retirement programs, which allow older employees to work part-time and receive full retirement benefits. This paper examines the experience of the phased retirement system for tenured faculty in the University of North Carolina system over the years 1996-98. After phased retirement was introduced, there was a sizable increase in the overall separation rate in the system. The key finding from an empirical analysis of the retirement decision as a function of pension incentives, employee performance, demographics, and campus characteristics is that the odds of entering phased retirement were strongly and inversely related to employee performance, as measured by recent pay increases." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Berg, Peter, Eileen Appelbaum, Tom Bailey & Arne L. Kalleberg (2004): Contesting time: International comparisons of employee control of working time. In: Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Jg. 57, H. 3, S. 331-349. DOI:10.1177/001979390405700301

Abstract

"The authors hypothesize that three broad factors affect the degree of workers' control over the timing and the total hours of their work: the institutional and regulatory environment within the country, labor market conditions, and management and labor union strategies. Drawing from their Interviews in 2000 with managers, public sector policy-makers and administrators, and union Leaders, as well as from previous literature, they illustrate how these factors actually affected working time and employee control over working time in the United States, Australia, Japan, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Their comparative analysis shows that in some countries, employers and labor unions negotiated contracts that increased employee control over working time and provided employers with greater flexibility; in others, employee control over working time remained unevenly distributed across the occupational spectrum." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Eldridge, Lucy P., Marilyn E. Manser & Phyllis Flohr Otto (2004): Alternative measures of supervisory employee hours and productivity growth. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 127, H. 4, S. 9-28.

Abstract

"An evaluation of new estimates of nonproduction and supervisory employee hours finds that the procedure currently used by BLS to estimate nonproduction and supervisory employee hours for the major sector productivity statistics does not misstate past productivity trends, but does undercount the number of hours worked." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Frazis, Harley & Jay Stewart (2004): What can time-use data tell us about hours of work? In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 127, H. 12, S. 3-9.

Abstract

"The number of hours people work for pay is an important economic measure. In addition to being a measure of labor utilization, it is a component of other economic statistics. For example, productivity measures are computed by dividing total output by total hours worked, and hourly wages are often computed by dividing usual weekly earnings by usual weekly hours worked. There are two major sources of hours data for the United States - the BLS Current Population Survey (CPS) and the BLS Current Employment Statistics survey (CES) - and estimates of weekly hours from these two surveys behave differently for a variety of reasons. The goal of this article is to use data from the new American Time Use Survey (ATUS) to shed light on the accuracy of hours-worked reports in the CPS. Because the purpose of this study is to determine whether respondents report hours correctly in CPS, it does not examine other factors that could result in differences in estimates of hours worked from CPS and ATUS. In addition to differences in the reporting of hours, differences in estimates can be due to differences in sample composition and differences in the reporting of other variables. We control for these other factors, but do not analyze their effects on differences in estimates. We examine the effect of these other factors on comparisons of weekly hours from CPS and ATUS in a forthcoming publication." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Funk, Lothar (2004): Mehr Beschäftigung für Ältere. Lehren aus dem Ausland. (IW-Positionen 08), Köln, S. 1-64.

Abstract

"Von 100 Einwohnern im Alter von 55 bis 64 Jahren waren in Deutschland im Jahr 2002 nur noch 38,4 Prozent beschäftigt. Das sind deutlich weniger als vor dreißig Jahren, als noch fast 50 Prozent erwerbstätig waren. Die Entwicklung in einer Reihe von Ländern zeigt, dass es möglich ist, höhere Erwerbstätigenquoten Älterer zu erreichen. Ausgehend von einem teilweise ähnlich geringen Niveau wie in Deutschland steigerten sie in wenigen Jahren die Erwerbstätigkeit Älterer erheblich. Hieraus lassen sich wesentliche Bedingungen für mehr Beschäftigung Älterer ableiten: Erstens könnten die Rentensysteme so gestaltet werden, dass ein vorzeitiges Ausscheiden aus dem Erwerbsleben weniger leicht und finanziell unattraktiv für Arbeitnehmer und Arbeitgeber ist. Zweitens verhilft ein geringer Regelungsgrad bei den Arbeitsverhältnissen zu einer hohen Erwerbstätigkeit aller und vor allem auch Älterer. Drittens würden höhere Investitionen in das vorhandene Humankapital auch über das 45. Lebensjahr hinaus erheblich dazu beitragen, die Beschäftigungsfähigkeit Älterer zu verbessern." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Gustman, Alan L. & Thomas L. Steinmeier (2004): Minimum hours constraints, job requirements and retirement. (NBER working paper 10876), Cambridge, Mass., 43 S. DOI:10.3386/w10876

Abstract

"A structural retirement model estimated with data from the Health and Retirement Study is used to simulate the effects of policies firms might adopt to improve employment conditions for older workers and thereby encourage delayed retirement. Firm policies that effectively abolished minimum hours constraints would strongly increase the number partially retired, while reducing full time work and full retirement, resulting in only a small net increase in full-time equivalent employment. Reducing physical and mental requirements of jobs would have much weaker effects on retirement than was suggested by work with the 1970s Retirement History Study. Reducing informal pressures to retire, increasing employer accommodations to health problems, and reducing the prevalence of layoffs and retirement windows would have only small effects on retirement outcomes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hart, Robert A. (2004): Working time at the crossroads? Workers-hours demand versus hedonic wage-hours models. In: L. Bellmann & C. Schnabel (Hrsg.) (2004): Betriebliche Arbeitszeitpolitik im Wandel (Beiträge zur Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, 288), S. 1-10.

Abstract

Der Autor plädiert dafür, den Blick vom europäischen Arbeitszeitmodell, dass arbeitsnachfrageorientiert ist, auf das in Amerika zunehmend an Einfluss gewinnende hedonische Lohn-Stunden-Modell zu wenden, um herauszufinden, warum Arbeitszeitpolitik als Beschäftigungspolitik im allgemeinen wenig erfolgreich ist. Das amerikanische Modell wurde von Lewis bereits 1969 entwickelt und schließt die Beschäftigungseffekte von Überstundenzuschlägen in die Betrachtung ein. Es zeigt auf, dass eine Arbeitszeitverkürzung zum Beschäftigungsabbau und zu mehr Überstunden führt. Somit steigt der durchschnittliche Stundenlohn. Weiterhin wird ausgeführt, dass in Europa über die Bedeutung von Arbeitsverträgen mit fest vereinbarter Arbeitszeit wenig bekannt ist. Auf welche Weise verhandeln Arbeitnehmer und Firmen Lohn-Stunden-Verträge? Werden die Kürzungen der Arbeitszeit durch einen internen Lohnausgleich neutralisiert? (IAB)

Zitatform

Horrigan, Michael & Diane Herz (2004): Planing, designing, and executing the BLS American time-use survey. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 127, H. 10, S. 3-19.

Abstract

"From conception to implementation, the American Time Use Survey was 12 years in the making; its four developmental phases represented ever deeper levels of agency commitment and outside statistical support, as well as an evolution in thinking regarding survey estimation objectives, units of measurement, sampling plans, and data collection and coding protocols." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Hutchens, Robert M. & Karen Grace-Martin (2004): Who among white collar workers has a opportunity for phased retirement? (IZA discussion paper 1155), Bonn, 40 S.

Abstract

"Utilizing a new survey of employers, this paper examines how and why establishments differ in their willingness to permit an older full-time white-collar worker to take phased retirement. Phased retirement means that an older worker remains with his or her employer while gradually reducing work hours and effort. Although older workers often express an interest in phased retirement, actual occurrences are evidently rare. A possible explanation is that employers limit opportunities for phased retirement. The survey indicates that employers are often willing to permit phased retirement, but primarily as an informal arrangement. The results also indicate that opportunities for phased retirement are greater in establishments that employ part-time white-collar workers, allow job sharing, and have flexible starting times. Opportunities tend to be more limited in establishments where white collar workers are unionized, and where the establishment is part of a larger organization." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Tekin, Erdal (2004): Single mothers working at night. Standard work, child care subsidies, and implications for welfare reform. (IZA discussion paper 1014), Bonn, 44 S.

Abstract

"Using a data set from the post welfare reform environment (the 1999 National Survey of America's Families), this paper investigates the impact of child care subsidies on the standard work (i.e., work performed during the traditional work hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. through Monday and Friday) decision of single mothers and tests whether this impact differs between welfare recipients and nonrecipients. The econometric strategy accounts for sample selection into the labor force and the potential endogeneity of child care subsidy receipt and welfare participation. Results suggest that child care subsidies are associated with a 6 percentage point increase in the probability of single mothers working at standard jobs. When the impact of subsidies is allowed to differ between welfare recipients and non-recipients, results indicate that welfare recipients are 14 percentage points more likely to work at standard jobs than others when they are offered a child care subsidy. Among non-recipients, child care subsidies increase standard work probability by only 1 percentage point. These results underscore the importance of child care subsidies helping low-income parents, especially welfare recipients, find jobs with conventional or standard schedules and lend support to the current practice of states' giving priority to welfare recipients for child care subsidies. Results are found to be robust to numerous specification checks." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Gornick, Janet C. & Marcia K. Meyers (2003): Supports for working families: Work and care policies across welfare states. In: CESifo DICE report, Jg. 1, H. 4, S. 13-18.

Abstract

Eltern überall in Europa und den USA teilen das gleiche Problem, nämlich eine Balance zwischen den Verpflichtungen des Arbeitsmarkts und der Familie herzustellen. Die notwendige Arbeitsteilung muss sowohl gerecht als auch ökonomisch vertretbar sein. Unter dieser Perspektive werden die sozialpolitischen Maßnahmen, die zehn industrielle Wohlfahrtsstaaten auf diesem Gebiet getroffen haben, beschrieben und miteinander verglichen. Der internationale Vergleich bezieht sich auf Belgien, Dänemark, Finnland, Frankreich, Deutschland, die Niederlande, Norwegen, Schweden, Großbritannien und die USA. Im allgemeinen lässt sich feststellen, dass sozialdemokratisch regierte Länder die großzügigsten Regelungen haben, die zudem für beide Geschlechter gleich gelten. Konservativ regierte europäische Länder unterstützen zwar Maßnahmen zur Bereitstellung der notwendigen Betreuungszeit und zur ökonomischen Stabilisierung der familiären Situation, sind aber weit weniger aktiv, was die Gleichstellung von Frauen und Männern bei bezahlter und unbezahlter Arbeit angeht. In diesen Ländern sind die Ungleichheiten in der Aufteilung von Arbeit unter den Geschlechtern am offensichtlichsten. Die Staaten wiederum wie Großbritannien und vor allem die USA, die sich am Konzept der freien Marktwirtschaft orientieren, stellen kaum Unterstützung für berufstätige Eltern bereit. In diesen Ländern sind die meisten Eltern auf das Wohlwollen ihrer Arbeitgeber angewiesen, wenn es um bezahlten Familienurlaub, geringere Arbeitszeiten oder mehr Freizeit geht. (IAB)

Zitatform

Hamermesh, Daniel S. & Jungmin Lee (2003): Stressed on four continents. Time crunch or yuppie kvetch? (NBER working paper 10186), Cambridge, Mass., 28 S., Anhang. DOI:10.3386/w10186

Abstract

"Social commentators have pointed to problems of women workers who face time stress' an absence of sufficient time to accomplish all their tasks. An economic theory views time stress as reflecting how tightly the time constraint binds households. Time stress will be more prevalent in households with higher incomes and whose members work longer in the market or on required' homework. Evidence from Australia, Canada, Germany, Korea and the United States corroborates this view. Adults in higher-income households perceive more time stress for the same amount of time spent in market work and household work. The importance of higher full incomes in generating time stress is not small, particularly in North America much is yuppie kvetch.' While time stress is most prevalent among working wives, a decomposition suggests that women would perceive more time stress than men even if both worked the same number of hours in the market and at home.This paper provides an answer to an important empirical puzzle in the retirement." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Schettkat, Ronald (2003): Differences in US-German time-allocation. Why do Americans work longer hours than Germans? (IZA discussion paper 697), Bonn, 26 S.

Abstract

"The conventional view is that Americans work longer hours than Germans and other Europeans but when time in household production is included, overall working time is very similar on both sides of the Atlantic. Americans spend more time on market work but German invest more in household production. This paper examines whether these differences in the allocation of time can be explained by differences in the incentive structure, this is by the taxwedge and differences in the wage differentials, as economic theory suggests. Its analysis of unique time-use data reveals that the differences in time-allocation patterns can indeed be explained by economic variables." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Weiss, Matthias M. (2003): Labor market effects of technological change and working time reduction. Some insights from a general equilibrium perspective. Mannheim, 100 S.

Abstract

Neuere Befunde legen nahe, dass wachsende Arbeitslosenraten in Kontinentaleuropa und zunehmende Lohnungleichheit in den USA und Großbritannien beide die Folge eines auf Facharbeit ausgerichteten technologischen Wandels sind. Die Rückkopplungseffekte dieser Entwicklung lassen sich nicht vollständig mit der sonst üblichen partiellen, sondern nur mit einer allgemeinen Gleichgewichtsanalyse erfassen. Die wichtigsten Folgen des Wandels der Produktivität bzw. der Arbeitszeit für die unterschiedlichen Arbeitsanforderungen, Löhne und die Beschäftigung werden diskutiert. Dazu gehört zum einen die Verdichtung der Lohnverteilung im Bereich der Facharbeit, zum anderen der Wandel der Produktivität, dem die gewandelten Güterpreise entgegenwirken. Auf dieser Grundlage wird diskutiert, ob Arbeitszeitverkürzung ein geeignetes Mittel gegen Beschäftigungslosigkeit sein kann. Dabei zeigt sich, dass Arbeitszeitverkürzung zu einem veränderten Konsumbedarf führt, was aber im Gegenschritt die Forderung nach ungelernter Arbeit und Beschäftigung zur Folge hat. (IAB)

Zitatform

(2002): Operating hours in Europe. State-of-the-art-report on operating hours research in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Sweden and the USA. (Berichte des ISO 66), Köln, 341 S.

Abstract

"Lange und flexible Betriebszeiten gelten als Indikatoren für die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit und Standortqualität der Wirtschaft. Die Art und Weise der Betriebs- und Arbeitszeitorganisation entscheidet auch über Umfang, Struktur und Form der Beschäftigung. Bislang sind im Rahmen der Europäischen Union drei Betriebszeitstudien (1989, 1994 und 1999) durchgeführt worden, die an den Kriterien der Repräsentativität und Vergleichbarkeit orientiert waren. Diese Untersuchungen weisen jedoch eine Reihe von methodischen und inhaltlichen Problemen auf, die sowohl die Vergleichbarkeit als auch die Zuverlässigkeit der Ergebnisse in Frage stellen. Ziel des internationalen Projektvorhabens EUCOWE ist es daher, durch eine repräsentative Betriebsbefragung in allen Wirtschaftsbereichen und Betriebsgrößenklassen in sechs europäischen Ländern (ergänzt durch Sekundäranalysen in Schweden und den USA) auf einer methodologisch zuverlässigen, die Kriterien der Repräsentativität und internationalen Vergleichbarkeit erfüllenden Grundlage den Zusammenhang von Betriebs- und Arbeitszeitmanagement und deren Auswirkungen auf Beschäftigung zu erforschen. Im Rahmen dieser auf die Gewinnung wichtiger Grundinformationen ausgelegten international vergleichenden Betriebsbefragung sollen noch folgende Spezialthemen (teil s mit den aus der Primärerhebung gewonnenen Daten, teils mithilfe von Sekundäranalysen) mitbearbeitet werden. - Das 'Service-Paradox'; - Der Flexibilitätskonflikt; - Defensive und offensive Strategien der Sicherung und Schaffung von Arbeitsplätzen; - Beschäftigungspolitik kleiner und mittlerer Firmen; - Globale, europäische, nationale oder sektorale Konkurrenz; - Betriebszeitmanagement, Flexibilität von Arbeitszeiten und das soziale Leben. Der Bericht stellt die Bestandsaufnahme zur Datenlage dar, die auf einem ersten Projekttreffen im Februar/März 2002 erarbeitet wurden." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Sozialordnung (2002): Entwicklung und Stand der Arbeitszeitflexibilisierung in Deutschland. Antwort der Bundesregierung auf die Große Anfrage der Fraktion der FDP. (Verhandlungen des Deutschen Bundestages. Drucksachen 14/9177 (29.05.2002)), 53 S.

Abstract

In der Drucksache werden Fragen zur allgemeinen Entwicklung der Arbeitszeit, zur Flexibilisierung der Arbeitszeit - auch im Vergleich zu anderen Ländern - und zur Regelung der Sonn- und Feiertagsarbeit beantwortet. (IAB)

Zitatform

Bell, Linda A. & Richard B. Freeman (2001): The incentive for working hard. Explaining hours worked differences in the US and Germany. In: Labour economics, Jg. 8, H. 2, S. 181-202. DOI:10.1016/S0927-5371(01)00030-6

Abstract

"This paper seeks to explain the greater hours worked by Americans compared to Germans in terms of forward-looking labor supply responses to differences in earnings inequality between the countries. We argue that workers choose current hours of work to gain promotions and advance in the distribution of earnings. Since US earnings are more unequally distributed than German earnings, the same extra work pays off more in the US, generating more hours worked. Supporting this inequality-hours hypothesis, we show that in both countries hours worked is positively related to earnings inequality in cross-section occupational contrasts and that hours worked raises future wages and promotion prospects in longitudinal data." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Garhammer, Manfred (2001): Arbeitszeit und Zeitwohlstand im internationalen Vergleich. In: WSI-Mitteilungen, Jg. 54, H. 4, S. 231-241.

Abstract

"Der Beitrag vergleicht mit repräsentativen Daten die Lebensqualität von Berufstätigen in der EU, den USA und Japan. Immer mehr Menschen erleben ständig Zeitnot, immer mehr definieren ihre Lebensqualität nicht nur über Güter-, sondern auch über Zeitwohlstand. Zur Erfassung von Zeitwohlstand wird ein Indikatorensystem vorgeschlagen, das individuelle Zeitressourcen und kollektive Zeitinstitutionen umfasst. Multivariate Analysen von Daten aus Deutschland weisen auf den eminenten Beitrag langer und flexibler Arbeitszeiten für die Betroffenheit durch Zeitnot hin. Der anschließende internationale Vergleich untersucht Mehrarbeit und geringfügige Beschäftigung, tatsächliche und Wunscharbeitszeiten und Zeitinstitutionen (Feiertage, Urlaub, Wochenende) wie die Verteilung von Zeitwohlstand auf Frauen und Männer. Die nach einer Faktorenanalyse über 55 Indikatoren erhaltenen Cluster ähnlicher Nationen zeigen, wie wichtig verschiedene Wohlfahrtsregime für die internationale Variation der Lebensqualität sind, ebenso wie für eine noch vorhandene, wenn auch gefährdete westeuropäishce Identität im Vergleich zu den USA und Japan." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

Zitatform

Houseman, Susan & Alice Nakamura (Hrsg.) (2001): Working time in comparative perspective. Volume 2: Life-cycle working time and nonstandard work. Kalamazoo: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 371 S.

Abstract

"This is the second ot two volumes of selected papers presented at the conference 'Changes in working time', which was held in Ottawa, Ontario, June 13-15, 1996. The chapters of the first volume focuse on the weekly hours that individuals work. The chapters of this volume study an expanded set of working time issues, which may be loosely grouped under two topics; working time over the life cycle and nonstandard work arrangements."

Zitatform

Lippe, Tanja van der & Liset van Dijk (Hrsg.) (2001): Women's employment in a comparative perspective. (Sociology and economics), New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 281 S.

Abstract

"Labor market patterns in Western Europe and the United States in the latter twentieth century, and particularly in the past twenty-five years, have shown a striking resemblance in the overall increase in women's employment. Despite this fact, there are also large differences in women's position among those countries. Moreover, East European countries differ considerably from Western countries. A cross-national comparison over time - one that compares women's employment in different institutional settings - is still lacking. That is the issue taken up in this volume, which contains comparative studies written by authors from the United States, Hungary, Germany, and the Netherlands. Three different perspectives are used. The first is the macro approach, which provides a thorough, focused understanding of the influence of the institutional context on women's work. The second perspective, the micro approach, gives insight into the employment behaviour of individual women within a certain context. Finally, the combined macro-micro approach makes clear the extent to which differences in women's work can be ascribed to differences in their institutional context or to their individual characteristics. Implicitly, the book also addresses the methodological question, which of these approaches is best suited for comparative studies of this kind?" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Trejo, Stephen J. (2001): Does the statutory overtime premium discourage long workweeks? (IZA discussion paper 373), Bonn, 34 S., Anhang.

Abstract

In dem Beitrag wird anhand jährlicher Erhebungen in den USA untersucht, inwieweit gesetzliche Regelungen der Überstundenbezahlung die Wochenarbeitszeit beeinflussen. (IAB)

Zitatform

Wong, Ging & Garnett Picot (Hrsg.) (2001): Working time in comparative perspective. Volume 1: Patterns, trends, and the policy implications for earnings inequality and unemployment. Kalamazoo: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 387 S.

Abstract

"This is the first of two volumes of selected papers presented at the conference on 'Changes in Working Time in Canada and the United States', which was held in Ottawa, Ontario, on June 13 - 15, 1996. It reflects a renewed interest in recent years in the empirical evidence for changing labor supply - both hours of work and labor market participation - and the implications for employment, income support benefits, and taxation policies and programs."

Zitatform

Gershuny, Jonathan (2000): Changing times. Work and leisure in postindustrial society. Oxford u.a.: Oxford University Press, 304 S.

Abstract

"Time allocation, whether considered at the level of the individual or of the society, is a major focus of public concern. Yet there is surprisingly little substantive evidence of how individuals and societies spend their time, and of how this has changed in the developed world over the recent past. The book brings together, for the first time, data gathered in some forty national scale 'time-diary' studies, from twenty countries, and covering the last third of the twentieth century. It examines the newly emerging political economy of time, in the light of new estimates of how time is actually spent, and of how this has changed, in the developed world." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Golden, Lonnie & Deborah M. Figart (Hrsg.) (2000): Working time. International trends, theory and policy perspectives. (Advances in social economics), London u.a.: Routledge, 288 S.

Abstract

"Working time is a crucial issue for both research and public policy. This book presents a comprehensive analysis of both paid and unpaid work time, integrating a discussion of overwork, underwork, shortening of the working week, and flexible work practices. Time at work is affected by a complex web of evolving culture and social relations, as well as market, technological, and macroeconomic forces, and institutions such as collective bargaining and government policy. Using a variety of new data sources, the authors review the latest trends on working time in numerous countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Zitatform

Latulippe, Denis & John Turner (2000): Partial retirement and pension policy in industrialized countries. In: International Labour Review, Jg. 139, H. 2, S. 179-195.

Abstract

Die Autoren diskutieren Auswirkungen und Vor- und Nachteile der Altersteilzeit in Industrieländern und geben einen knappen Überblick über die einschlägigen Regelungen in acht Ländern (Deutschland, Frankreich, Belgien, Niederlande, Japan, USA, Norwegen, Schweden). (IAB)

Zitatform

Bell, David N.F. & Robert A. Hart (1999): Overtime working in an unregulated labour market. (IZA discussion paper 44), Bonn, 27 S.

Abstract

Unter Verwendung von Daten einer britischen Verdiensterhebung werden Überstunden und Überstundenzuschläge männlicher Arbeitnehmer geschätzt. Die Verhältnisse auf dem unregulierten britischen Arbeitsmarkt werden mit denen in den USA verglichen, wo Überstunden vorgeschrieben sind. (IAB)

Abstract

Die Beiträge des Bandes behandeln die beschäftigungspolitischen Aspekte neuer Arbeitszeitmodelle, die mit vermehrter Teilzeitarbeit einhergehenden kulturellen, betrieblichen, individuellen und geschlechtsspezifischen Fragen und blicken auf die Arbeitszeitpolitik der Nachbarländer. Die Titel lauten:
1. Heisig: Ende des Normalarbeitsverhältnisses? Neue Formen der Arbeits(zeit)gestaltung
2. Ganßmann: Mehr Beschäftiung in Deutschland. Ein dritter Weg zwischen Markt und Staat?
3. Möhlmann: Arbeitszeitverkürzungen in "Flexiblen Arbeitszeitmodellen"
4. Steffen: Altersteilzeit. Zwischenbilanz der Möglichkeiten und Hindernisse
5. Geissler/Pfau-Effinger: Wandel der Erwerbsbiographie und der Lebensplanung junger Frauen
6. Bauer: Teilzeit ist nicht gleich Teilzeit. Besonderheiten der Teilzeitbeschäftigung von Männern
7. Peinelt-Jordan: Personalpolitik für aktive Väter
8. Holland: Optionale Arbeitszeit für alle. Die Förderung qualifizierter Teilzeitarbeit als Aufgaben der Tarif- und Betriebspolitik
9. Jacoby-Ebener/Ebener: Teilzeitarbeit im Erziehungsurlaub. Gesetzliche Verbesserungen und Klarstellungen erforderlich!
10. Christiansen: Vollbeschäftigung durch Deregulierung? Das US-amerikanische Modell
11. Volz: Entschärfung der Arbeitsmarktkrise durch beschäftigungspolitische Doppelstrategie? Wirtschaftspolitik in Frankreich mit neuen Akzenten
12. Pfeuffer: Staatliche Intervention und soziale Bewegung. Der französische Weg
13. Madsen: Arbeitszeitpolitik und Vereinbarungen über bezahlte Freistellung. Die dänischen Erfahrungen in den 90er Jahren
14. Nadai: Weniger ist mehr. Die Schweiz: Die doppelte 25-Stunden-Woche als Modell zur Umverteilung von Arbeit
15. Fulton: Der britische Arbeitsmarkt und die Politik von New Labour
16. van Paridon: Modell Holland? Der niederländische Arbeitsmarkt seit 1980. (IAB2)

Zitatform

McCarthy, Eugene & William McGaughey (1989): Nonfinancial economics. The case for shorter hours of work. New York, NY: Praeger, XII, 232 S.

Abstract

"This book is written in support of proposals to reduce work time in order to improve employment opportunities. The authors, both of whom have been deeply involved in shorter workweek policy debates, argue that the failure of the U.S. to enact shorter workweek legislation when it was first proposed in the late 1950s was a significant policy mistake. They argue further that reduced work hours are an effective means to full employment, improved income distribution, and a stronger consumer market - in addition to promising a better life to the contemporary American family. Policymakers concerned with employment issues as well as trade union officials and students of industrial relations will find here a new framework of ideas to support the renewed consideration of shorter workweek legislation. The authors approach their subject by analyzing the consequences of the U.S. rejection of shorter workweek proposals over the past 30 years. Among them, they contend, are an increasing polarization of incomes, the devotion of more and more resources to the support of economic waste, and a continuing problem with unemployment. The current preoccupation with dollar-denominated growth (a legacy from the Great Depression) has produced a debt-ridden system which increasingly fails to accomodate people's real needs: hence, the authors call for a nonfinancial analysis of economic questions. Taken as a whole, this volume offers both an eloquent defense of leisure and a cogent analysis of the beneficial economic effects of the institution of a shorter workweek or longer annual vacation." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Praeger Publishers), ((en))

Zitatform

Hedges, Janice Neipert (1971): A look at the 4-day workweek. In: Monthly labor review, Jg. 94, H. 2, S. 33-37.

Abstract

Der Übergang von der Fünf- zur Vier-Tage-Woche ist in der Öffentlichkeit zum Thema geworden. Der Beitrag sieht darin eine noch nicht beantwortete Frage; zwar ist die Norm einer Arbeitswoche mit fünf Arbeitstagen nicht auf ewig festgeschrieben, und dennoch ist eine Verdichtung auf vier Tage nicht unumstritten. Der Beitrag weist auf vereinzelte Versuche mit der Einführung der Vier-Tage-Woche auf Unternehmensebene in den USA hin, wirft aber im Fortgang zugunsten einer fundierteren Einordnung dieser Form der Arbeitszeitverdichtung einen tieferen Blick auf die anderen Trends rund um die Arbeitszeit (Verlangen nach freier Zeit am Stück, eine Verbesserung der Work-Life-Balance und die Verschiedenartigkeit existierender Arbeitszeitarrangements) um deren Vor- und Nachteile aus Sicht der Unternehmen wie der Arbeitnehmer gegeneinander abzuwägen. Pro-Argumente sind aus Arbeitgebersicht eine Verringerung der Stückkosten, aus Sicht der Arbeitnehmer neben der größeren Strecke zusammenhängender freier Zeit die Verringerung der wöchentlichen Pendelzeiten von 20 Prozent (mit der Nebenwirkung einer Verringerung des Berufsverkehrs). Contra-Argumente sind notwendig werdende Überstundenzahlungen bei einem zehnstündigen Arbeitstag und ein möglicher Produktivitätsverlust durch nachlassende Arbeitsfähigkeit bei längeren Arbeitstagen. Der Beitrag kommt zur Einschätzung einer wahrscheinlich größeren Verbreitung der Vier-Tage-Woche, ohne dass diese aber die dominante Rolle einnehmen wird, die die Fünf-Tage-Woche eingenommen hatte, und sieht Hindernisse vor allem bei den produktionstechnischen Voraussetzungen, dem gewerkschaftlichen Widerstand gegen die 10-Stunden-Tage ohne Lohnausgleich (bei einer gesetzlichen 40-Stunden-Woche), in der Persistenz der traditionellen Work-Life-Balance mit fünf Werktagen plus Wochenende. Auch scheint eine weitere allgemeine Reduzierung der Wochenarbeitszeit nicht mehr so leicht erreichbar wie in der bisherigen Entwicklung der Arbeitszeitnormen. Abschließend wird ein kurzer Blick auf die Auswirkungen einer in weiten Teilen durchgesetzten Vier-Tage-Woche auf das (auch geschlechtsspezifische) Arbeitskräfteangebot, auf Nachfrage und Angebot von Teilzeitarbeit, auf Mehrfachbeschäftigung und ein generell verändertes Erwerbsverhalten geworfen. (IAB)