ALTERNATIVE WORK SCHEDULES

Alternative work schedules are those that include work hours that are normally outside the traditional 8-hour workday or 40-hour workweek. Alternative schedules are often used to allow workers to earn a living while having the flexibility to take care of their children, relatives and other personal situations. Typically alternative schedules are designed to:

1. Tighthten control over mandatory overtime,
2. Offer lexible work days (Flex Time),
3. Compress the workweek,
4. Accomodate shift and days off swapping and
5. Provide opportunities for telecommuting.

The emerging needs of the contemporary workforce and a changing make alternative work schedules important for working families trying to balance their jobs with family responsibilities. Did you know that:

1. More than 1 in 4 working-women work evening or weekend shifts.

2. Nearly 1 in 5 full-time workers work nonstandard hours. More than 1 in 3 are women.

3. Workers subjected to mandatory overtime work have higher rates of alcohol use, stress and absenteeism.

4. Among working parents, 66 percent of fathers and 51 percent of mothers are unhappy with the amount of time they have to spend with their children.

5. Some 46 percent of women married or living with someone work a different schedule than that of their spouse or domestic partner.

Limits on Mandatory Overtime

Being forced to stay at work past the regularly scheduled end time can be very stressful. Many working parents do not have backup arrangements for child care or cannot afford backup care. Provisions in union contracts making overtime voluntary protect employees from this loss of power over their daily schedules.

Flexible Work Hours

Flextime agreements allow employees to vary the start and end of their workday as long as each employee works within a specific range of “core” hours and works the prescribed number of hours each day or each week.

Compressed Workweek

Examples are schedules that allow workers to work four 10-hour days for an extra day off per week or eight 9-hour days and one 8-hour day for an extra day off every two weeks.

Part-time work with Benefits

Part-time work can give working people flexibility to take care of family needs while still receiving an income. It is important to maintain benefits when negotiating for part-time work.

Telecommuting

Telecommuting is working from a site other than the central worksite, usually at home. Unions traditionally have opposed telecommuting because work done at home is difficult to regulate and easily could become “sweatshop” labor. Another union objection is that workers who telecommute can become isolated from one another and are difficult to organize. However, unions have been successful in bargaining for telecommuting provisions that benefit workers.

Job Sharing

Under a job-share agreement, two part-time employees share one full-time job. The two employees divide the full-time salary between them according to hours worked. Benefits and seniority often are prorated according to hours worked, although in some job-share situations both may receive full benefits and/or seniority. Union contracts can protect employees’ right to enter into a job-share arrangement and can establish standards for job shares.

Shift Swap

A shift-swap provision in a union contract allows workers to voluntarily exchange shifts or workdays to accommodate such family needs as attending school events or medical appointments.

Shortened Workweek

Unions have bargained for shorter workweeks for their members with full compensation. Some unions also have used shorter workweek provisions with less compensation as an alternative to layoffs.

Voluntary Reduced Time

Voluntary reduced time allows an employee to reduce the number of hours she or he works in a week in order to have extra time to take care of personal or family needs.