Download full text
(2.339Mb)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-79408-1
Exports for your reference manager
Full-time hours, part-time work: questioning the sufficiency of working hours as a measure of employment status
[journal article]
Abstract Although distinctions between full-time and part-time work are vital for understanding inequalities at work and home, consensus and critical reflection are lacking in how employment status should be defined. Full-time and part-time work are often represented as a binary split between those working u... view more
Although distinctions between full-time and part-time work are vital for understanding inequalities at work and home, consensus and critical reflection are lacking in how employment status should be defined. Full-time and part-time work are often represented as a binary split between those working under or over a specific number of hours. However, this paper, using exploratory mixed methods, evidences problems with assumptions based on working-hour thresholds and highlights the importance of workplace culture and household contexts. Using the UK Labour Force Survey we reveal ambiguities in the reporting of employment status for 12% of workers when comparing definitions based on number of working days, working hours and self-assessment. Ambiguities are particularly prevalent among working mothers with almost a third, who would be regarded as working full-time using hour-based measures, classified as ambiguous according to the measures used here. In-depth interviews with parents who self-classify as part-time workers, despite working over 35 hours a week, reveal mechanisms behind ambiguity within this group linked to organisational norms, previous working hours and divisions of household labour. The paper therefore argues workplace and household contexts are crucial to understanding employment status and recommends this should be taken into account in new multidimensional measures.... view less
Keywords
employment; part-time work; measurement; working hours; Great Britain
Classification
Occupational Research, Occupational Sociology
Family Sociology, Sociology of Sexual Behavior
Free Keywords
Employment status; part-time; working hours; mixed-methods; UK; fourth quarter of the 2018 UK Labour Force Survey
Document language
English
Publication Year
2022
Page/Pages
p. 63-83
Journal
Community, Work & Family, 25 (2022) 1
Issue topic
Advancing Equality at Work and Home: Possibilities for Change and New Frontiers. Guest Editors: Heejung Chung, Ameeta Jaga, and Susan Lambert
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/13668803.2021.1991888
ISSN
1469-3615
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed