Journal
REVISTA DE SAUDE PUBLICA
Volume 38, Issue -, Pages 19-25Publisher
REVISTA DE SAUDE PUBLICA
DOI: 10.1590/S0034-89102004000700004
Keywords
employment; work hours; shift work; working conditions; occupational health; workers; family; conflict (psychology)
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Objectives The expansion of precarious employment in OECD countries has been widely associated with negative health and safety effects. Although many shiftworkers are precariously employed shiftwork research has concentrated on full-time workers in continuing employment. This paper examines the impact of precarious employment on working hours, work-life conflict and health by comparing casual employees, to fulltime, permanent employees working in the same occupations and workplaces. Methods Thirty-nine convergent interviews were conducted in two five-star hotels. The participants included 26 full-time and 13 casual (temporary) employees. They ranged in age from 19 to 61 years and included 17 females and 22 males. Working hours ranged from zero to 73 hours per week. Results Marked differences emerged between the reports of casual and full-time employees about working hours, work-life conflict and health. Casuals were more likely to work highly irregular hours over which they had little control. Their daily and weekly working hours ranged from very lone to very short according to organisational requirements. Long working hours, combined with low predictability and control. produced greater disruption to family and social lives and poorer work-life balance for casuals. Uncoordinated hours across multiple jobs exacerbated these problems in some cases. Health-related issues reported to arise from work-life conflict included sleep disturbance, fatigue and disrupted exercise and dietary regimes. Conclusions This study identified significant disadvantages of casual employment. In the same hotels, and doing largely the same jobs. casual employees had less desirable and predictable work schedules. greater work-life conflict and more as;associated health complaints than permanent workers.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available