Kapitelvorschau

Kapitelvorschau

Abstract

Minijobs, a special form of part-time employment, have developed into an established form of employment on the German labour market since the 1990s. They are heavily criticised for their potential labour market effects, their impact on employees’ social security and their bad working conditions. Due to the multiple risks, minijobs are often considered as prime examples of low-quality jobs. However, to date there has been hardly any research dealing with the subjective perception of the work situation of minijobbers, resulting in a minijob debate without minijobbers’ views. This article examines the perceived job quality in minijobs. Based on a quantitative survey, different dimensions of work in minijobs are being analysed, concentrating on the relationship between desired and experienced work situations. Moreover, the global job satisfaction of minijobbers and its predictors are investigated. The analysis shows that minijobs are evaluated positively regarding many intrinsic, social and health-related aspects of work and that the overall job evaluation is significantly correlated to the perceived job quality. The study underlines the need for multidimensional and subjective approaches to job quality as well as a nuanced critique of minijobs which has to differentiate between the institutional regulation, the working conditions and employees’ subjective perception.

Abstract

Prolonging employment and postponing retirement are seen as promising solutions to make labour markets and pension systems sustainable in ageing Europe with low employment rates of older people and widespread early retirement. The aim of the paper is to identify to what extent quality of working conditions and sector of employment affect the actual age at retirement. Based on SHARELIFE data on 13 European countries, we investigate the association between age at retirement on the one hand and 12 quality of working conditions attributes and six economic sectors on the other using linear regression models. Our results show that freedom to decide how to do the work is significantly associated with a higher age at retirement and adequate salary with a lower age at retirement among both men and women, while working in a comfortable environment, without emotional demands, and where employees experienced fair treatment is positively related to age at retirement only for men. Furthermore, our analysis provides evidence that quality of working conditions attributes are more important for age at retirement in the service, manufacturing and industry sectors than in the finance, trade, and primary sectors. A stronger focus on improving quality of working conditions is likely to promote a higher age at retirement among both men and women.

Abstract

This study complements the discussion on changes in work values by insights about the dimension of altruistic work values, which to date has been largely neglected. In particular, we analyze how a change in the structure of the workforce (gender, age, and generation) has affected the importance of altruistic work values in the past decades. Using German data from four different years (1989, 1997, 2006, and 2016), we found that work values’ importance has increased during the observed periods, while extrinsic work values have become less important and intrinsic work values have not changed. An increase of women and an aging workforce marginally have contributed to a change in altruistic work values, while shifting generational distribution had no effect. Overall, the explanatory powers of the included determinants are, despite their importance in theoretical discussions, fairly small. Thus, we discuss alternatives for explaining the change in altruistic work values.

Abstract

A central question of research on job quality is which factors impact the evaluation of job quality. The possibility of experiencing work as meaningful has repeatedly been named in research as an important factor in the quality of work, but, so far, there is a lack of studies investigating the subjective demands of employees for meaningful work. For this reason, the following contribution focuses on subjective standards of meaningful work, examining which standards employees in “good work” (i.e. expert service work with a high degree of autonomy) have. It also evaluates barriers that undermine the experience of meaningfulness at work. Based on a sample of professionals in "good work" - from positions in management to medicine and social work, the subjectively relevant dimensions of the violation of good work are shown. The study utilizes a perspective of the sociology of critique in which the actors themselves criticize the violation of norms in the world of work. 40 qualitative interviews were conducted in which employment biographies, subjectively perceived stress situations, and subjective resources were questioned. The article identifies four areas in which experiences of suffering by professionals are demonstrated by subpar standards for meaningful work. The article aims to gain a more precise understanding of the perception of work quality in professions with good work and to show that the world of work can be understood as a place of criticism impacted by moral standards which influence the experience of employees.

Abstract

We analyze the effects of deviation from gender stereotypes on job satisfaction for male and female employees in general and for employees in leadership positions. Based on social role theory, backlash mechanisms owing to the violation of gender norms and role incongruity theory, we expect that deviating from gender stereotypes negatively affects job satisfaction. We test our hypotheses by hierarchically applying multiple linear regressions to German employee data. Results show a stable negative effect of deviation from gender stereotypes on job satisfaction for women only. Our findings are consistent with recent studies that confirm traditional gender structures on the labor market and expand our knowledge about backlash effects, since they indicate that deviation from gender norms not only affects objective career indicators but also subjective ones. As job satisfaction is a predictor of organizational success, we discuss ways for organizations to reduce the harmful effects of persistent traditional gender stereotypes in workplaces.

Abstract

Workplace health promotion (WHP) can be the starting point for organizational development towards becoming a healthy organization offering good jobs. Participative processes are explicit standards for designing WHP thought to always be positive for the workforce. However, they may also result in employees creating ideal contexts for overexertion. This paper critically examines the potentials of co-creation in the employee health context and as standard for creating the good job. We do this analyzing the employee health-related co-creational processes in a faith-based hospital using multimethod organizational analysis with observational, ethnographic and interventional elements. The results indicate that the professionalism of the employees and sharing organizational goals can prevent co-creating more stress and strain.

Abstract

This article addresses the issue of good work in terms of working time organisation by exploring the link between diverse working time practices and work intensity. Existing studies have demonstrated that non-standard working hours expose workers to the pressures of work intensification, which can be defined as the compression of work activities into a unit of time. This article expands existing knowledge by investigating how the outcomes of non-standard working hours differ by sector and occupation, as well as by incorporating detailed and comprehensive measures of working time organisation in the empirical analysis. Based on EWCS data from 2010 and 2015 for 28 EU countries, the empirical analysis uses multilevel regression models with workers nested within countries. The results show that non-standard working hours and employer-driven scheduling are, on average, linked to more intense work than regular daytime hours scheduled from Monday to Friday or under worker-led flexibility arrangements. Consistent with expectations, the study points to significant differences in this relationship between sectors and occupations. Among others, in low-skilled and routine occupations, and service sectors such as transport, commerce, hospitality and health, short hours of work and employer-led flexibility are associated with relatively more intense work. Even where workers have some control over their schedules, jobs in these areas are not linked to lower levels of work intensity. The findings also support the expectation of overwork in high-skilled jobs, where long hours of work and high levels of worker-led flexibility are linked to relatively more intense work.