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Work Hours (work + hour)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	28%
Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	25%
Humanities and Social Sciences	21%
Psychology	18%

Selected Abstracts

Flexible work bundles and organizational competitiveness: a cross-national study of the European work context

JOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 8 2005
Eleni T. Stavrou
The present study explores the categorization of flexible work arrangements (FWAs) into bundles and their connection to organizational competitiveness in the European Union. The measures of competitiveness were performance, turnover, and absenteeism. Four moderators were used in the study, organization sector, industry sector, organization size, and organizational women-supportiveness. The analyses revealed four FWA Bundles, namely Non-Standard Work Patterns, Work Away from the Office, Non-Standard Work Hours and Work Outsourced. Non-Standard Work Patterns were found to be related to decreased turnover (in the private sector), while Work Away from the Office was related to improved performance and reduced absenteeism. Non-Standard Work Hours and Work Outsourced (within the public sector) were positively related to turnover, suggesting that these types are possibly not being used as true flexibility arrangements. Finally, post-hoc analysis revealed that Non-Standard Work Hours was related to increased performance only among Swedish organizations. Implications for management and future research are discussed. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Work Hours and Caseload as Predictors of Physician Burnout: The Mediating Effects by Perceived Workload and by Autonomy

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2010
Arie Shirom
We tested a model in which perceived workload and autonomy were hypothesised to mediate the effects of work hours and caseload on physician burnout. The study was based on data provided by 890 specialists representing six medical specialties. We used structural equation modeling to test our hypotheses. Controlling for the effects of gender, seniority, and the specialists' academic affiliation, we found that the study data fit the hypothesised model,reflecting these hypotheses,quite well. As expected, workload predicted higher levels of global burnout and physical fatigue, while autonomy predicted lower levels of global burnout. Work hours and caseload predicted global burnout only indirectly, via their effects on either perceived workload or autonomy. These findings suggest that public policies, designed to reduce physician work hours in order to reduce burnout and improve patients' safety, should take into account physician perceived workload and autonomy. Nous avons mis à l'épreuve un modèle centré sur l'hypothèse selon laquelle la charge de travail perçue et l'autonomie régulaient l'impact de la durée du travail médical et administratif sur le burnout des médecins. La recherche a exploité des données fournies par 890 spécialistes relevant de six spécialités médicales. On a fait appel à une modélisation en équations structurales pour valider nos hypothèses. En contrôlant l'action du genre, de l'âge et du type de spécialité, il est apparu que les données correspondaient parfaitement au modèle hypothétique. Comme prévu, la charge de travail prédisait des niveaux plus élevés de burnout global et de fatigue physique, alors que l'autonomie débouchait sur des niveaux plus faibles de burnout global. La durée du travail ne prédisait qu'indirectement le burnout global, par l'entremise des retombées sur la charge de travail perçue et l'autonomie. Ces résultats montrent que la réglementation publique qui envisage de réduire le temps de travail des médecins dans le souci d'atténuer le burnout et d'améliorer la sécurité des malades devrait prendre en considération la charge de travail perçue et l'autonomie des médecins. [source]

,High-performance' Management Practices, Working Hours and Work,Life Balance

BRITISH JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, Issue 2 2003
Michael White
The effects of selected high-performance practices and working hours on work,life balance are analysed with data from national surveys of British employees in 1992 and 2000. Alongside long hours, which are a constant source of negative job-to-home spillover, certain ,high-performance' practices have become more strongly related to negative spillover during this period. Surprisingly, dual-earner couples are not especially liable to spillover , if anything, less so than single-earner couples. Additionally, the presence of young children has become less important over time. Overall, the results suggest a conflict between high-performance practices and work-life balance policies. [source]

Taking Pressure Off Families: Child-Care Subsidies Lessen Mothers' Work-Hour Problems

JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 1 2006
Julie E. Press
We use the Philadelphia Survey of Child Care and Work to model the effect of child-care subsidies and other ecological demands and resources on the work hour, shift, and overtime problems of 191 low-income urban mothers. Comparing subsidy applicants who do and do not receive cash payments for child care, we find that mothers who receive subsidies are 21% less likely to experience at least one work hour,related problem on the job. Our results suggest that child-care subsidies do more than allow women to enter the labor force. Subsidies help make it easier for mothers in low-wage labor both to comply with employer demands for additional work hours and to earn the needed wages that accompany them. [source]

Characteristics of Emergency Medicine Program Directors

ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 2 2006
Michael S. Beeson MD
Objectives: To characterize emergency medicine (EM) program directors (PDs) and compare the data, where possible, with those from other related published studies. Methods: An online survey was e-mailed in 2002 to all EM PDs of programs that were approved by the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education. The survey included questions concerning demographics, work hours, support staff, potential problems and solutions, salary and expenses, and satisfaction. Results: One hundred nine of 124 (88%) PDs (69.7% university, 27.5% community, and 2.8% military) completed the survey; 85.3% were male. Mean age was 43.6 years (95% confidence interval [CI] = 42.6 to 44.7 yr). The mean time as a PD was 5.7 years (95% CI = 4.9 to 6.5 yr), with 56% serving five years or less. The mean time expected to remain as PD is an additional 6.0 years (95% CI = 5.2 to 6.8). A 1995 study noted that 50% of EM PDs had been in the position for less than three years, and 68% anticipated continuing in their position for less than five years. On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 as highest), the mean satisfaction with the position of PD was 8.0 (95% CI = 7.2 to 8.3). Those PDs who stated that the previous PD had mentored them planned to stay a mean of 2.0 years longer than did those who were not mentored (95% CI of difference of means = 0.53 to 3.53). Sixty-five percent of PDs had served previously as an associate PD. Most PDs (92%) have an associate or assistant PD, with 54% reporting one; 25%, two; and 9%, three associate or assistant PDs. A 1995 study noted that 62% had an associate PD. Ninety-two percent have a program coordinator, and 35% stated that they have both a residency secretary and a program coordinator. Program directors worked a median of 195 hours per month: clinical, 75 hours; scholarly activity, 20 hours; administrative, 80 hours; and teaching and residency conferences, 20 hours; compared with a median total hours of 220 previously reported. Lack of adequate time to do the job required, career needs interfering with family needs, and lack of adequate faculty help with residency matters were identified as the most important problems (means of 3.5 [95% CI = 3.2 to 3.7], 3.4 [95% CI = 3.2 to 3.6], and 3.1 [95% CI = 2.9 to 3.3], respectively, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 as maximum). This study identified multiple resources that were found to be useful by >50% of PDs, including national meetings, lectures, advice from others, and self-study. Conclusions: Emergency medicine PDs generally are very satisfied with the position of PD, perhaps because of increased support and resources. Although PD turnover remains an issue, PDs intend to remain in the position for a longer period of time than noted before this study. This may reflect the overall satisfaction with the position as well as the increased resources and support now available to the PD. PDs have greater satisfaction if they have been mentored for the position. [source]

Were volatile organic compounds the inducing factors for subjective symptoms of employees working in newly constructed hospitals?

ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY, Issue 4 2004
Tomoko Takigawa
Abstract This study demonstrated possible relationships between environmental, personal, and occupational factors and changes in the subjective health symptoms of 214 employees after the relocation of a hospital in a region of Japan. Eight indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were detected in at least one of the 19 rooms investigated, and total VOC (TVOC) concentrations in 8 rooms exceeded the advisable value (400 ,g/m3) established by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan. Formaldehyde was detected in all the investigated rooms, but none of the results exceeded the guideline value (100 ,g/m3). Multiple logistic regression analysis was applied to select variables significantly associated with the subjective symptoms that can be induced by sick building syndrome. The results showed that subjective symptoms of deterioration in the skin, eye, ear, throat, chest, central nervous system, autonomic system, musculoskeletal system, and digestive system among employees were associated mainly with gender difference and high TVOC concentrations (>1200 ,g/m3). Long work hours (>50 h per week) in females and smoking in males were to be blamed for the deterioration of their symptoms. The present findings suggest that to protect employees from indoor environment-related adverse health effects, it is necessary to reduce the concentration of indoor chemicals in new buildings, to decrease work hours, and to forbid smoking. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 19: 280,290, 2004. [source]

The Work-Family Interface: Differentiating Balance and Fit

FAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCES RESEARCH JOURNAL, Issue 2 2004
Maribeth C. Clarke
Work-family fit has recently emerged in work and family literature, comparable to work-family balance in that it represents interactions between work and family and yet distinct because it precedes balance and other outcomes. This study explores the relationship between, predictive factors of, and interactive moderating effects of work-family fit and work-family balance. Data are from a survey of business graduate school alumni (n = 387). Findings indicate that fit and balance are two separate constructs. Fit is uniquely predicted by work hours, age, family income, and household labor satisfaction. Balance is uniquely predicted by frequency of family activities. Job satisfaction and marital satisfaction predicted both fit and balance. Analyses suggest that fit is based more on the structural aspects of work-family interactions, whereas balance appears to be based more on the psychological factors. Job satisfaction, marital satisfaction, and frequency of family activities moderated the relationship between fit and balance. [source]

Changes in Wives' Employment When Husbands Stop Working: A Recession-Prosperity Comparison

FAMILY RELATIONS, Issue 4 2010
Marybeth J. Mattingly
American families are experiencing the effects of the "Great Recession." Most of the job losses are accruing to men, so families may find it strategic for wives to enter the labor force, or increase their work hours. We consider this possibility using the May 2008 and 2009 Current Population Survey, and compare findings to May 2004 and 2005 data, a time of relative prosperity. We find that wives of husbands who stopped working during the recession were more likely to increase work hours, and more likely to commence or seek work. During the Great Recession years, the effect for wives entering the labor force is significantly greater than during the earlier years of relative prosperity. [source]

Volume and Nature of Telephone Calls in a Specialty Headache Practice

HEADACHE, Issue 9 2002
Elizabeth Loder MD
Background.,No information exists regarding the contribution of patient-related telephone calls to the burden of headache practice. Objective.,To identify the nature and volume of patient-related telephone calls to a specialty headache practice over a 1-month period. Design and Methods.,The characteristics of all patient-related calls to a single headache practitioner occurring during July 2001 were documented. Information was obtained on the caller, reason for call, length of call, timing and day of call, stated importance of call, patient's principal headache diagnosis, and principal comorbid psychiatric disorder, if any. Results.,One hundred sixty-five outpatient headache-related calls were received in July 2001, 3.17 for every hour of headache clinic scheduled. A total of 65% of all calls was generated by just 36% of callers. Of the 32 patients who placed more than one call during the study period, 50% had chronic daily headache, 53% had a personality disorder, and 38% had both. Twenty-seven percent of all calls were placed by someone other than the patient, 58% involved requests for medication refills, and 17% reported a new symptom or medication side effect. Over half of all calls were placed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Relatively few occurred outside work hours; 18% of calls characterized as "emergency" and 36% of calls characterized as urgent involved requests for controlled substances. Most of these calls were placed by patients with personality disorders. None of the 11 calls characterized as emergency calls was judged so by the physician; only 19% of the urgent calls were judged so by the physician. Conclusions.,Telephone calls contribute substantially to the burden of caring for patients in a specialty headache practice. Patients with chronic daily headache and personality disorders contribute disproportionately to this telephone burden. Efforts to identify such patients at presentation and educate them regarding appropriate telephone use seem to be warranted. [source]

Maternal employment and overweight children: does timing matter?

HEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 8 2008
Stephanie von Hinke Kessler Scholder
Abstract Recent literature has shown consistent evidence of a positive relationship between maternal employment and children's overweight status. These studies largely use average weekly work hours over the child's life to measure employment. This paper specifically aims at exploring the importance of the timing of employment. Using various econometric techniques to control for observable and unobservable child and family characteristics, the results show that full-time maternal employment during mid-childhood positively affects the probability of being overweight at age 16. There is no evidence that part-time or full-time employment at earlier/later ages affects this probability. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

The influence of family environment and child temperament on work/family role strain for mothers and fathers

INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 5 2003
Marceline Lee
Abstract This study examined the additive effect of structural variables, child characteristics, and the family environment on mothers' and fathers' work/family role strain. Differences between mothers and fathers on these variables were also examined. The sample consisted of 36 dualearner families whose children had been in daycare from infancy through 4 years of age. Structural variables included work schedules and time spent with child for mothers only, fathers only, and both parents together with child. Child characteristics included temperament and health. Family environment variables included different components of the family environment (conflict, cohesion, expressiveness, organization, and control) and parenting daily hassles. Results showed that mothers' time with child and caregiving for child were greater than fathers'. Mothers reported more expressiveness in the family and more daily hassles with children than fathers. Mothers' level of role strain was also significantly higher than fathers'. For mothers, role strain was associated with hours away from home, child sociability, family conflict, and daily hassles resulting in an R2 of 0.57. Fathers' role strain was associated with family expressiveness, organization, and their wives' daily hassles resulting in an R2 of 0.37. Data suggest that mothers' and fathers' role strain may be driven by somewhat different factors. For women, aspects of the family and the child and work hours accounted for a considerable portion of the variance while for men, only aspects of the family environment were associated with their level of role strain. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Natural resource-collection work and children's schooling in Malawi

AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS, Issue 2-3 2004
Flora J. Nankhuni
Abstract This paper presents results of research that investigates if long hours of work spent by children in fuel wood and water-collection activities, i. e., natural resource-collection work, influence the likelihood that a child aged 6,14 attends school. Potential endogeneity of resource-collection work hours is corrected for, using two-stage conditional maximum likelihood estimation. Data from the 1997,1998 Malawi Integrated Household Survey (IHS) conducted by the Malawi National Statistics Office (NSO) in conjunction with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) are used. The study finds that Malawian children are significantly involved in resource-collection work and their likelihood of attending school decreases with increases in hours allocated to this work. The study further shows that girls spend more hours on resource-collection work and are more likely to be attending school while burdened by this work. Consequently, girls may find it difficult to progress well in school. However, girls are not necessarily less likely to be attending school. Results further show that presence of more women in a household is associated with a lower burden of resource-collection work on children and a higher probability of children's school attendance. Finally, the research shows that children from the most environmentally degraded districts of central and southern Malawi are less likely to attend school and relatively fewer of them have progressed to secondary school compared to those-from districts in the north. [source]

Taking Pressure Off Families: Child-Care Subsidies Lessen Mothers' Work-Hour Problems

Role Balance Among White Married Couples

JOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 4 2001
Stephen R. Marks
We generate models predicting wives' and husbands' feelings of overall balance across roles. Drawing on fine-grained data about marital lifestyles and time use, we find few predictors that are the same for both partners. Both report greater role balance when their level of parental attachment to children is higher and when their marital satisfaction is greater, but gendered time use gives rise to important differences. Wives report greater balance when they have more paid work hours but have fewer of these hours on weekends. Wives' balance is also greater when they feel less financial strain, have less leisure time alone with their children, more couple leisure alone with their husbands, and more social network involvement. Husbands' contribute to wives' balance when they report more relationship maintenance in the marriage and more leisure with their children at those times when wives are not present. Husbands' own role balance increases as their income rises, but it decreases as their work hours rise. Husbands' balance also rises with more nuclear family leisure, and it lessens as their leisure alone increases. Our discussion highlights the ways that gendered marital roles lead to these different correlates of balance. [source]

Long work hours: a social identity perspective on meta-analysis data

JOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 7 2008
Thomas W. H. Ng
The current study utilizes social identity theory to investigate employees' work hours. Specifically, we use meta-analysis to examine the relationships between hours worked and indicators of organizational identity (e.g., organizational support and tenure), occupational identity (e.g., human capital investments and work centrality), and family identity (e.g., family responsibilities and family satisfaction). The meta-analysis also allowed us to explore other important correlates of hours worked (e.g., situational demands, job performance, mental health, and physical health), moderating variables (e.g., age, gender, and job complexity), and curvilinear relationships of work hours to social identity indicators. Overall, we found that occupational factors and situational demands had the strongest relationships with hours worked, hours worked were negatively associated with measures of employee well-being, gender had several significant moderating effects, and there were curvilinear relationships between hours worked and well-being and work,family conflict variables. The article concludes with directions for future theoretical and empirical research. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Maternal employment and teenage childbearing: Evidence from the PSID

JOURNAL OF POLICY ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2005
Leonard M. LopooArticle first published online: 17 NOV 200
Over the last 30 years, the tenet of promoting self-sufficiency through work has become one of the primary objectives of many social welfare policies in the United States. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, the author asks if a mother's work hours influence her daughter's teenage fertility. The findings suggest a negative relationship, with the largest effects for the daughters of mothers who work more than 1,000 hours per year. Results among AFDC recipients suggest that an increase in a mother's work hours from zero to 20 hours per week reduces her daughter's probability of a teen birth by 33 percent. © 2005 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management. [source]

Farm work exposure of older male farmers in Saskatchewan,

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE, Issue 7 2010
Donald C. Voaklander PhD
Abstract Background The average age of farmers in North America is increasing each year. Research has determined that age and health status are both related to increased risk of injury. The purpose of this research was to determine the association of health and medication factors with exposure to farm work in older male farmers. Methods As part of a cohort study to study determinants of injury on Saskatchewan farms, 5,502 farm people associated with 2,386 Saskatchewan farms were surveyed by mail questionnaire during the winter of 2007. The primary dependent variable was average hours per week of farm work. Independent variables included illnesses, age, and medication use. Results The mean number of hours worked per week by farmers aged 55 years and older was 48. There was a significant relationship between age and hours worked with each year of age accounting for about 0.85,hr less work per week. Medication use was related to a reduction in weekly work hours during the busy fall season but was not related to work exposure averaged over the whole year. In multivariable linear regression analysis, the main contributing variables to farm work exposure were: retired status (,), working off farm (,), and age (,). Conclusion The amount of hours older farmers work on the farm is considerable compared to any other occupational category. While there is a declining trend in the amount of work, a 75-year-old farmer still works, on average, about 34,hr per week. Some farmers do appear to self-limit during busy times of the year if they are taking medication. Am. J. Ind. Med. 53:706,715, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Effect of a dysmenorrhea Chinese medicinal prescription on uterus contractility in vitro

PHYTOTHERAPY RESEARCH, Issue 7 2003
Chun-Sen Hsu
Abstract Dysmenorrhea is a common gynecologic complaint. After their ,rst menstrual period, 30%,60% of American women suffer from some level of discomfort. It is estimated that 6 billion work hours are lost in this manner every year in the United States which equals an economic loss of nearly US$200 million. Dysmenorrhea is not only a problem for women but also one which affects quality of life and even reduces productivity in general. Dysmenorrhea is directly related to elevated levels of PGF2, (prostaglandins F2,) and is treated using nonsteroid anti-in,ammatory drugs in Western medicine. Though ef,cacy of the latter is rapid, there are many side effects to the liver, kidney, and digestive system. The anti-in,ammatory effect is temporary, and such drugs are unable to provide a long-term cure. Because of this, Chinese medicinal therapy is being considered as a feasible alternative medicine. In this study, Wen-Jing Tang (one of the dysmenorrhea Chinese medicinal prescriptions) was selected. A 50% alcoholic solution was used to extract active ingredients and create a freeze-dried product. At ,rst, Wen-Jing Tang was used to suppress spontaneous contractions and prostaglandins F2, -induced contractions of rat uterine smooth muscle in vitro. Then, an assessment was performed to determine the mechanism of the prescription. Acetylcholine, ergonovine, propranolol, oxytocin, and KCl were used to analyze the physiological mechanisms of WJT. The results show that antagonism of both PGF2, and ACh are the major mechanisms for treating dysmenorrhea by Wen-Jing Tang. Furthermore, the antagonistic effect of KCl-depolarization contractions may be an auxiliary mechanism of the curative effect. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Children and Women's Hours of Work,

THE ECONOMIC JOURNAL, Issue 526 2008
Gillian Paull
The prevalence of women in part-time work continues to be a distinguishing feature of female employment in Britain. Using data from the BHPS, this article analyses the evolution of work hours for women and men during family formation and development. A substantial movement towards part-time work for women occurs with the first birth and continues steadily for ten years. The gender gap in hours subsequently diminishes but persists even after children have grown up. Births have little impact on men's hours, although there is some adjustment in the balance of work hours for couples following births and last school entry. [source]

Rural,Urban Differences in Primary Care Physicians' Practice Patterns, Characteristics, and Incomes

THE JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 2 2008
William B. Weeks MD
ABSTRACT:,Context:Low salaries and difficult work conditions are perceived as a major barrier to the recruitment of primary care physicians to rural settings. Purpose: To examine rural,urban differences in physician work effort, physician characteristics, and practice characteristics, and to determine whether, after adjusting for any observed differences, rural primary care physicians' incomes were lower than those of urban primary care physicians. Methods: Using survey data from actively practicing office-based general practitioners (1,157), family physicians (1,378), general internists (2,811), or pediatricians (1,752) who responded to the American Medical Association's annual survey of physicians between 1992 and 2002, we used linear regression modeling to determine the association between practicing in a rural (nonmetropolitan) or urban (standard metropolitan statistical area) setting and physicians' annual incomes after controlling for specialty, work effort, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics. Findings: Rural primary care physicians' unadjusted annual incomes were similar to their urban counterparts, but they tended to work longer hours, complete more patient visits, and have a much greater proportion of Medicaid patients. After adjusting for work effort, physician characteristics, and practice characteristics, primary care physicians who practiced in rural settings made $9,585 (5%) less than their urban counterparts (95% confidence intervals: ,$14,569, ,$4,602, P < .001). In particular, rural practicing general internists and pediatricians experienced lower incomes than did their urban counterparts. Conclusions: Addressing rural physicians' lower incomes, longer work hours, and greater dependence on Medicaid reimbursement may improve the ability to ensure that an adequate supply of primary care physicians practice in rural settings. [source]

Surgical workforce in New Zealand: characteristics, activities and limitations

ANZ JOURNAL OF SURGERY, Issue 4 2009
Antony Raymont
Planning the future surgical workforce is a vitally important activity in which the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons is actively engaged. This paper reports on a survey, undertaken in late 2005, of all vocationally registered New Zealand surgeons. It describes their age and gender distribution, their workload, the distribution of their work hours and limitations on their activities. It is hoped that this will contribute to planning of surgical services for the future. Of surgeons surveyed, 452 (73%) responded. Their mean age was 51 years and 7% were female. Recruitment has been stable at approximately 20 per year since 1990. New Zealand surgeons worked, on average, 48 h per week and could accommodate additional work. Seventy-seven per cent of surgeons took after-hours calls and reported a 55% chance of returning to the hospital each week (30% in the main population centres and 70% in other districts). Overall, surgeons spent 50% of their clinical time in private practice. Most surgeons experienced significant resource constraints in providing surgical care. The current workload of surgeons in New Zealand is acceptable but after-hours duties, especially in secondary hospitals, may be unattractive. Surgical services are currently limited by institutional resources. If there is a substantial increase in the need for surgery in the future, surgical recruitment, which has been stable, should be increased. [source]

Work Hours and Caseload as Predictors of Physician Burnout: The Mediating Effects by Perceived Workload and by Autonomy

Psychosocial Determinants of Work-to-Family Conflict among Knowledge Workers with Boundaryless Work

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY: HEALTH AND WELL-BEING, Issue 2 2010
Karen Albertsen
The aims of the present study were to investigate (1) whether antecedents of work-to-family conflict identified in previous research have similar effects among knowledge workers, whether work environmental factors, particularly relevant for boundaryless work and not explored previously, affect work-to-family conflict in this group, and (2) whether the workplace culture (family friendliness and demands on availability) has a main effect on work-to-family conflict and moderates the effects of the work environmental factors. A sample of 396 Danish knowledge workers selected from a national, representative cohort study was followed up after 12 months. Data were analysed with a multiple GLM procedure with and without adjustment for baseline values. The results identified adjustment behavior toward deadlines as an important precursor for the development of conflicts. Further, a family-friendly workplace culture protected against conflicts and moderated the effect of influence at work. Well-known antecedents, such as quantitative demands and number of work hours, were further confirmed as relevant also in this specific context. It is concluded that a workload of a suitable size, sustainable behavior related to deadlines, and a family-friendly workplace culture could potentially improve the likelihood that employees feel confident that they perform successfully both at work and at home. [source]

The Economics of Teams among Technicians

BRITISH JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, Issue 1 2001
Rosemary Batt
This paper examines the economic logic of organizing field technicians into self-managed teams, an approach to work organization that shifts the division of labour from a hierarchical to horizontal one. Economic efficiencies arise through the integration of direct and indirect labour tasks and the alignment of'the organizational structure with the occupational logic of communities of practice among technicians. Self-managed teams absorb the monitoring and co-ordination tasks of supervisors, substantially reducing indirect labour costs but without adversely affecting objective measures of quality and labour productivity. For technicians, team membership means longer work hours, but higher wages through overtime pay. [source]

The State of the Clerkship: A Survey of Emergency Medicine Clerkship Directors

ACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 7 2007
David A. Wald DO
Objectives:An emergency medicine (EM) clerkship can provide a medical student with a unique educational experience. The authors sought to describe the current experiential curriculum of the EM clerkship, along with methods of evaluation, feedback, and grading. Methods:A descriptive survey was utilized. Clerkship directors at EM residency programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education completed an online questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results:Ninety-two (70%) of 132 EM clerkship directors completed the survey. Sixty institutions (65%) accepted only fourth-year medical students, and 35% accepted both third- and fourth-year students. The median number of didactic lecture hours provided during each rotation block for students was ten (interquartile range [IQR], 6,16). The average length of a student's clinical shift was eight hours, while the median number of clinical shifts reported per rotation was 15 (IQR, 14,16). The median number of hours worked weekly by a medical student was 40 (IQR, 35,43). Fifty-four EM clerkship directors (59%) incorporated the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education six core competencies into their evaluation process. Seventy-one clerkship directors (77%) used a shift evaluation card to evaluate the clinical performance of medical students. Fifty-four (59%) incorporated an end-of-rotation written examination to determine the final rotation grade for a medical student. Conclusions:Medical students are exposed to a variety of didactic lectures and procedure labs but have similar experiences regarding shift length and work hours. Methods of evaluation of clinical performance vary across clinical sites. [source]

Factors influencing career choices in radiology trainees in Queensland, Australia

JOURNAL OF MEDICAL IMAGING AND RADIATION ONCOLOGY, Issue 2 2010
SW Ip
Summary The aim of this study was to investigate factors influencing career choices in radiology trainees. We distributed a 27-question written survey to all radiology registrars in Queensland. The questions investigated whether radiology was their first specialty choice, career satisfaction, ideal working conditions and attitudes regarding having children during the time of training. Forty-four of 51 surveys were returned (86% participation rate, 73% men, P = 0.048055) with 100% reporting a high job satisfaction; 28% of male registrars compared to 8% of female registrars did extra work outside of training to earn extra money (P = 0.000003), and 17% of female registrars took a leave of absence during their training, while no male registrar did (P = 0.087923). Only one female trainee worked part-time (P = 0.272727). In addition, 58% of female registrars planned a pregnancy (P = 0.731789) before completion of training; 83% of women versus 75% of men had no children (P = 0.329263). Only 5% of trainees agreed that it was easy to arrange part-time training, only 14% stated that it was easy to negotiate flexible work schedules and 7% agreed that it was easy to return to work after a period of absence. ,Time spent with immediate family' was rated the most important lifestyle factor, followed by ,work hours' and ,on-call duty'. The least important factors were ,being away from extended family', ,availability of part-time work' and whether ,work was in a rural location'. Overall job satisfaction is high among radiology trainees. Nevertheless, lifestyle factors, particularly those related to work time, are becoming more important for career decisions. This should be taken into account when designing and structuring radiology training to ensure that it is considered an attractive career choice. [source]