Working part-time, for example as a job share, has advantages for both employers and employees under the right circumstances. However, there are also drawbacks to some part-time work arrangements.
Often, family commitments or ill health can stop people from working full-time, especially women, who are traditionally the main caretakers of young children, and ailing parents can often only work part-time. The difficulty of finding affordable childcare adds to the dilemma of mothers. Some retirees are also sometimes looking for part-time work. This could be in order to keep busy, after spending all their adult life being busy, or to earn some extra income to augment meagre pensions.
Pensioners looking for part-time work
Many pensioners like to carry on working to enjoy the company and occupy themselves. There is a large range of volunteering options. Charity shops, charities, historic houses and museums are often staffed by retired volunteers who offer their time and knowledge free of charge.
Some pensioners, on the other hand, are taking paid work out of necessity. Unfortunately, the UK has a basic state pension system that is just above the breakeven point which means, at present, “there isn’t much room to manoeuvre for those battling the cost of living crisis“. Often, retirement means a very large drop in what one can afford. If one still has a mortgage or never managed to buy a home of one’s own and pays ever-increasing rent, with outgoings having risen disproportionately in the last decades, many pensioners struggle.
Retirees over 66 need to look at options for alternate income rather than just relying on the state pension. If they have no savings or a private pension fund, many face poverty. If they are still healthy and fit enough, some are looking for paid work.
What part-time jobs are available?
Part-time work on offer to job seekers depends on their qualifications and skills. A simple Google search shows a large variety of jobs available. There are, for example, currently numerous vacancies in schools for qualified and experienced teachers of Maths, English and Psychology. For people without degrees, there are jobs as teaching assistants and tutors for special needs students. The care industry is advertising for carers, cleaners and catering assistants. Retailers offer work at various levels, from retail assistants to managers. Charities need fundraisers and project managers. Volunteer centres need office administrators and volunteer drivers or befrienders. With online shopping, including for meals, delivery drivers are in great demand. The list of job offers by agencies is long.
Working mothers
In the 1990s, I owned an au pair agency, finding young girls who wanted to spend some time in an English-speaking family to improve their language skills. These au pairs made it possible for women to manage their working lives with their responsibilities as mothers. Even if a part-time job only covered the expenses of an au pair, being able to work made it easier for women to keep up to date with their field of work and progress in their careers.
Especially for professional women, a dropout of several years would make it difficult to return to a job at the same level as before. As a medical doctor, a clinical psychologist or a social worker, for example, one has to submit regular reports of one’s work to the professional association or one loses one’s registration. Part-time work allows people to comply with these requirements.
Women sharing jobs
Several of my civil servant colleagues were young mothers who could not do a full-time job. Since their skills were in demand, their employer offered them a job share. Some were in very responsible positions and managed a heavy workload to their line manager’s satisfaction. It was a win-win situation for the staff and the employer. The women didn’t feel they had to choose between having a family or having a successful career. The employer had the advantage of experienced staff who often worked more than the hours they were paid for to make up for the flexibility they enjoyed. But their job was very demanding.
Job share demands
One of the vital aspects of a successfully shared job is good communication, a good handover system and regular catch-ups. The sharers have to get on with each other and come to terms with eventual differences in working styles. My colleagues seemed to manage this well.
Part-time work is not for everyone
Job share is not available in many categories of jobs and part-time work available consists of the usual nine-to-five working hours but just two to three times a week. But people with commitments cannot do a full day’s work. Childcare is difficult to find and expensive. Thus, not everybody can afford to work part-time.
Single mothers in lower-paid jobs, for example, who have to keep their family on their own, struggle to manage both work and their childcare commitments. Sometimes, what they earn is deducted from the benefits they receive from the state. Some people are financially better off not working, even though they risk finding employment more difficult after several years out of work. Sadly, people in lower-income jobs often have no choice but to depend on benefits, and in recent years, on food banks to feed their families.
Employers could be more flexible
Some of the part-time jobs on offer could be filled faster and give people the opportunity to come off the benefits system if employers showed more flexibility for family commitments. Jobshare, for example, could work in many sectors if offering half-day work every day instead of a few full nine-to-five days. It would help mothers with children at school to work around drop-offs and pick-ups. It would help some elderly who cannot do eight hours of work in a stretch. Maybe employers with hard-to-fill vacancies should reconsider the time slots they offer, especially for those who have to fulfil family commitments. It could be a win-win situation for both employers and employees.
