The Experts below are selected from a list of 372 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Lonnie Golden - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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FLSA Working Hours Reform: Worker Well‐Being Effects in an Economic Framework
Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, 2015Co-Authors: Lonnie GoldenAbstract:type="main" xml:id="irel12112-abs-0001"> This article discusses a model developed to predict the effects of recently proposed amendments to the FLSA workweek and overtime provisions. The model contrasts allowing compensatory time for overtime pay for private nonexempt employees to “rights to request” reduced hours. Hours demanded are likely to rise for workers who request comp time, undermining the intention of family-friendliness and alleviating Overemployment, unless accompanied by offsetting policies that would prevent the denied use or forced use of comp time and that resurrect some monetary deterrent effect. A unique survey shows that the preference for time over money and comp time is relatively more prevalent among exempt, long hours and women workers; thus, worker welfare is likely better served if comp time were incorporated into an individualized, employee-initiated right to request.
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Distinctions between Overemployment, Overwork, Workaholism and Heavy Work Investment
2014Co-Authors: Lonnie GoldenAbstract:The purpose of this chapter will be to consider why at least some people are driven to work hours beyond either their initially preferred extent of commitment toward work or beyond their own capacity that is sustainable in terms of physical or mental health or well-being. It aims to build a comprehensive model of work hours determination that employs the recent behavioral economics’ emphases on relative incomes, aspirations, preference adaptation and happiness. It considers that work hours may be both a forward-looking and a backward-looking form of investment, and the role of such incentives, explicit and implicit, in determining a worker’s preferred number of hours. It then makes the subtle but importance distinctions between overwork, Overemployment and workaholic, and between the intrinsic, extrinsic and institutional motivations for working longer hours, even to the point of becoming overworked or addicted to work. will explore potential returns to investment in “nonwork” or leisure time, by distinguishing five types of time use, at least two of which have investment-type properties that working hours have. These will be referred to as “productive leisure” and “recuperative leisure.” It provides recent estimates of the incidence of overwork and Overemployment. It will contrast the demographic and work characteristics of workers who express apparent satisfaction with their number of work hours and those who maintain a preference for reduced hours of work even if accompanied by reduce earnings. The former includes gender and age, for example, and the latter includes whether they are paid hourly or salary, their current duration of hours, and occupation type.
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Distinctions between Overemployment, Overwork, Workaholism and Heavy Investments in Work Time
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2013Co-Authors: Lonnie GoldenAbstract:Contemporary labor economics has focused far more on preferred labor supply, and much less on whether workers are able to get the hours they truly desire, or that even when one’s labor supply could be considered voluntarily provided time and effort, it could lead to unanticipated adverse consequences on their own well-being. Industrial-organizational and occupational health psychology has focused on this latter issue of negative well-being consequences, but less so on the difference in the extent to which situational labor supply is entirely voluntary versus at least partly involuntary. The emerging issue of “heavy work investment” re-frames the issue of the motivations behind labor supply preferences as having short-term costs but often with potential longer term payoffs (Snir and Harpaz, 2012). The purpose of this chapter is to consider why at least some people are driven to work longer hours beyond their initially preferred extent of time commitment, defined as “Overemployment,” and perhaps beyond their own capacity that is sustainable in terms of physical or mental health or well-being either, referred to as “overwork.” The first aim is to display a comprehensive model of work hours determination. This employs recent behavioral economics’ emphases on relative status, aspirations and preference adaptation and process benefits. It emphasizes how work hours may be a forward-looking (and also a backward-looking) form of investment for a potential return in future well-being, in the form of income or perhaps non-income amenities at work. It explores the role of incentives, explicit and implicit, in determining a worker’s preferred number of hours. The former refers to extrinsic motivation, such as a monetary bonus for extra production. The latter involves intrinsic motivation, such as public recognition or title with status, for performing extra work. It then goes on to focus on Overemployment, the inability to reduce one’s work hours toward preferred shorter hours (and not just a shift in daily timing of a given duration of hours), despite a willingness to sacrifice some pay, which amounts to 18 percent of polled workers in the US. It makes subtle but important distinctions between being overemployed with being overworked or workaholic.
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The effects of working time on productivity and firm performance: a research synthesis paper
2012Co-Authors: Lonnie GoldenAbstract:This research synthesis paper attempts to summarize the various effects of working time, in its multiple dimensions, described in the research literature in the past years. It covers the available empirical evidence regarding the effects of both hours of work and flexible types of working time arrangements. It discusses in particular the effects of long working hours and flexibility in the timing of work schedules and their impact on both labour productivity and firm performance via the underlying long-run labour costs. It considers the various dimensions of working time and its features of interest, such as duration, flexibility, variability (unpredictability) and divergence from preferences (mismatches — Overemployment and underemployment). It reviews the credible, state-of-the-art research studies, particularly those conducted since 2000, from many countries, so as to help inform discussions between the three social players and their experts. Those studies are both macroeconomic and microeconomic in scope, although the latter predominate. This paper covers the broadest possible range of relevant literature, by both discipline and country, including developed and developing countries. The literature is vast and nuanced, and inevitably some stones are likely to have been left unturned in this synopsis. The paper examines the effects of working time first on worker productivity and then on the longer run factors that affect costs. Individual performance and costs associated with the length and flexibility of working time can often influence firm performance. The paper considers the number of normal hours, short hours (less than 35 hours per week), and long hours (over 48 hours per week), but focuses on the observed effects of various types of flexible working time arrangements (i.e. flexitime, compressed workweeks, hours averaging, working time accounts/time banking, etc.) and different shift schedules. It refers to programmes, policies and practices initiated by employers that allow workers at least some discretion in adjusting the length and/or scheduling of their working time to meet their preferences.
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Why Do People Overwork? Over-Supply of Hours of Labor, Labor Market Forces and Adaptive Preferences
2008Co-Authors: Lonnie Golden, Morris AltmanAbstract:Several key trends across most advanced economic economies have increased both desired hours of work and the salience of working time on well-being. Models in the economics discipline offer both labor supply and labor demand reasons to explain why many people might be willing to work longer hours. The standard microeconomic model of individual labor supply provides a minimalist approach that is no more than a starting point in understanding work hours trends and consequent worker well-being. This paper first establishes the range of factors that determine how many hours a worker wishes to and actually works. It synthesizes findings from conventional and behavioral economics, and related disciplines, to answer the question, what might cause workers' hours of work to climb? There are both push and pull mechanisms jointly at work. Such mechanisms may exist at the organizational, community, national and perhaps even global levels. It goes on to explore the notion that someone can be working too much, for their own good, or at least possibly for the family or economy. It explores the potential feedbacks between long hours, Overemployment and overwork and raises the possibility for endogeneity of desired labor supply through adaptive preferences for work and income. Finally, it briefly considers implications for individual, organizational and public policy actions to counter the potential persistence of long work hours and Overemployment.
Steffen Otterbach - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Working-time regulation, long hours working, Overemployment and mental health
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2019Co-Authors: Steffen Otterbach, Andy Charlwood, Yin-king Fok, Mark WoodenAbstract:Using nationally representative panel data from Australia and Germany, this article investigates the relationships between working-time regulation, long working hours, Overemployment and mental health, as measured by the Mental Component Summary score from the 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12). Fixed effects and dynamic linear models are estimated, which, together with the longitudinal nature of the data, enable person-specific traits that are time invariant to be controlled for. Drawing on the Varieties of Capitalism literature it is hypothesized that the system of collective regulation of working time in Germany will be more effective in limiting the incidence of Overemployment than the more individualized system of regulation in Australia so that the prevalence of working time related mental ill health is lower. Results do not support this hypothesis. Overemployment is similarly common in both countries and is also associated with lower levels of mental health in both countries.
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Work hour constraints in the German nursing workforce: A quarter of a century in review.
Health policy (Amsterdam Netherlands), 2018Co-Authors: Mohamad Alameddine, Steffen Otterbach, Bayan Rafii, Alfonso Sousa-pozaAbstract:Abstract Background Work hour constraints (WHC), or the mismatch between desired and actual worktime, can negatively affect work productivity, job satisfaction, worker health and job fluctuations. Objectives This study analyzes the WHC trends in the German nursing market between 1990 and 2015. Methods Using data from 25 waves (1990–1995 and 1997–2015) of the German Socio-Economic Panel, the contractual, actual, and desired worktime among a representative sample of German nurses (N = 6493) were analyzed. The trends in over/underemployment for full and part-time nurses and the modalities/trends in overtime compensation were analyzed. A Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition was used to explain changes in worktime. Results Although German nurses’ actual and contractual work hours decreased substantially between 1990 and 2015, their desired work hours remained stable (31 h/week), precipitating a persistent gap between actual and desired work hours and an ongoing reliance on overtime. For full-time nurses, the actual work hours consistently exceeded the contracted ones by 3–6 hours. For part-time nurses, the actual and desired work hours have remained very similar, indicating ability to control workforce participation. Conclusions WHC remained persistently high over the quarter century studied, with Overemployment affecting nearly half of the nursing workforce. Overemployment, resulting primarily from overtime, was high among full-time nurses. Study findings could guide the formulation of programs to optimize German nursing workforce participation.
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WORK HOUR MISMATCH AND JOB MOBILITY: ADJUSTMENT CHANNELS AND RESOLUTION RATES
Economic Inquiry, 2018Co-Authors: Michael C. Knaus, Steffen OtterbachAbstract:This paper analyses the role of job changes in overcoming work hour constraints and the work hour mismatches resulting from these constraints (i.e., differences between actual and desired work hours). Building on previous findings that job change increases the flexibility of actual work hours, the study addresses two as yet neglected questions in the context: (i) How do changes in desired work hours, in addition to changes in actual work hours, contribute to the resolution of these mismatches? (ii) Does the increased flexibility help actually to resolve work hour mismatches? We exploit information about the magnitude of the prevailing mismatch to improve both the credibility and interpretation of the results. We find that job change increases the probability of resolving work hour mismatches, but far less than expected with free choice of hours across jobs. Instead, large fractions of workers either stay or switch into Overemployment. We thoroughly investigate the robustness and heterogeneity of our results.
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Working-Time Mismatch and Mental Health
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2016Co-Authors: Steffen Otterbach, Mark Wooden, Yin-king FokAbstract:Nationally representative panel survey data for Germany and Australia are used to investigate the impact of working-time mismatches (i.e., differences between actual and desired work hours) on mental health, as measured by the Mental Component Summary Score from the SF-12. Fixed effects and dynamic linear models are estimated, which, together with the longitudinal nature of the data, enable person-specific traits that are time invariant to be controlled for. The incorporation of dynamics also reduces concerns about the potential effects of reverse causation. The results suggest that Overemployment (working more hours than desired) has adverse consequences for the mental health of workers in both countries. Underemployment (working fewer hours than desired), however, seems to only be of significance in Australia.
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Work Hours Constraints and Health
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2012Co-Authors: David Bell, Steffen Otterbach, Alfonso Sousa-pozaAbstract:The issue of whether employees who work more hours than they want to suffer adverse health consequences is important not only at the individual level but also for governmental formation of work time policy. Our study investigates this question by analyzing the impact of the discrepancy between actual and desired work hours on self-perceived health outcomes in Germany and the United Kingdom. Based on nationally representative longitudinal data, our results show that work-hour mismatches (i.e., differences between actual and desired hours) have negative effects on workers’ health. In particular, we show that “Overemployment” – working more hours than desired – has negative effects on different measures of self-perceived health.
Maike Andresen - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Because Work Time Is Life Time" - Employees' Perceptions of Individual Overemployment, Its Causes and Its Consequences.
Frontiers in psychology, 2019Co-Authors: Julia Hiemer, Maike AndresenAbstract:Many employees would prefer to reduce work time and can be defined as overemployed. However, the concept of Overemployment is poorly understood. The purpose of this article is to define Overemployment from employees' point of view, to explain why people work more than they prefer, and to understand the individual consequences it has. We investigate 26 overemployed employees using a Grounded Theory approach. We find that Overemployment is a four-dimensional experience consisting of work time length, work time competition (with time outside work), work time distribution on tasks, and work density. A self-reinforcing circle of personal and situational drivers seems to explain the persistence of Overemployment. Regarding the psychosocial consequences of Overemployment, our findings show large variations, whereby work time sovereignty seems to play a moderating role. This study provides a multidimensional framework of Overemployment that provides a basis for understanding employees' perceptions and behavior regarding Overemployment and for deriving appropriate actions to reduce Overemployment.
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When less time is preferred: An analysis of the conceptualization and measurement of Overemployment:
Time & Society, 2019Co-Authors: Julia Hiemer, Maike AndresenAbstract:Socioeconomic panel data indicate that numerous employees would prefer to work less, i.e. that they are overemployed. However, due to inconsistent definitions and divergent operationalizations of o...
Deborah De Moortel - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Underemployment, Overemployment and deterioration of mental health: the role of job rewards
International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2018Co-Authors: Deborah De Moortel, Nico Dragano, Christophe Vanroelen, Morten WahrendorfAbstract:Objectives Working more (Overemployment) or less (underemployment) than preferred has been associated with poor mental health in cross-sectional studies, but longitudinal evidence is scarce. We investigate whether under- and Overemployment is associated with 2-year changes of mental health and whether associations vary by job rewards (i.e. high earnings, job security, promotion prospects and occupational prestige). Methods We used two waves of the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), with information on mental health collected in 2006 and 2008. Workers in paid employment (3266 men and 3139 women) who did not change jobs between 2006 and 2008, aged 20–60 years were selected. Under- and Overemployment was assessed using the discrepancy between the actual and preferred working hours. Mental health was assessed using the Mental Component Summary (MCS) score, a subscale from the Short Form 12 Health Survey. Questions on rewards at work were added and divided into tertiles. Conditional change models were estimated to predict change in MCS. Results Findings indicate that Overemployment and low reward at work (for men and women) were linked to a reduction in mental health. Underemployment was not related to a reduction in mental health. Albeit associations between under-/Overemployment and mental health slightly differed across levels of reward, interactions did not reach statistical significance. Conclusions Our findings demonstrate that Overemployment was related to negative mental health change, and that this relationship held true both for people with high and with low reward at work.
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underemployment Overemployment and deterioration of mental health the role of job rewards
International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2018Co-Authors: Deborah De Moortel, Nico Dragano, Christophe Vanroelen, Morten WahrendorfAbstract:Working more (Overemployment) or less (underemployment) than preferred has been associated with poor mental health in cross-sectional studies, but longitudinal evidence is scarce. We investigate whether under- and Overemployment is associated with 2-year changes of mental health and whether associations vary by job rewards (i.e. high earnings, job security, promotion prospects and occupational prestige). We used two waves of the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP), with information on mental health collected in 2006 and 2008. Workers in paid employment (3266 men and 3139 women) who did not change jobs between 2006 and 2008, aged 20–60 years were selected. Under- and Overemployment was assessed using the discrepancy between the actual and preferred working hours. Mental health was assessed using the Mental Component Summary (MCS) score, a subscale from the Short Form 12 Health Survey. Questions on rewards at work were added and divided into tertiles. Conditional change models were estimated to predict change in MCS. Findings indicate that Overemployment and low reward at work (for men and women) were linked to a reduction in mental health. Underemployment was not related to a reduction in mental health. Albeit associations between under-/Overemployment and mental health slightly differed across levels of reward, interactions did not reach statistical significance. Our findings demonstrate that Overemployment was related to negative mental health change, and that this relationship held true both for people with high and with low reward at work.
Mark Wooden - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Working-time regulation, long hours working, Overemployment and mental health
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2019Co-Authors: Steffen Otterbach, Andy Charlwood, Yin-king Fok, Mark WoodenAbstract:Using nationally representative panel data from Australia and Germany, this article investigates the relationships between working-time regulation, long working hours, Overemployment and mental health, as measured by the Mental Component Summary score from the 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12). Fixed effects and dynamic linear models are estimated, which, together with the longitudinal nature of the data, enable person-specific traits that are time invariant to be controlled for. Drawing on the Varieties of Capitalism literature it is hypothesized that the system of collective regulation of working time in Germany will be more effective in limiting the incidence of Overemployment than the more individualized system of regulation in Australia so that the prevalence of working time related mental ill health is lower. Results do not support this hypothesis. Overemployment is similarly common in both countries and is also associated with lower levels of mental health in both countries.
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Working-Time Mismatch and Mental Health
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2016Co-Authors: Steffen Otterbach, Mark Wooden, Yin-king FokAbstract:Nationally representative panel survey data for Germany and Australia are used to investigate the impact of working-time mismatches (i.e., differences between actual and desired work hours) on mental health, as measured by the Mental Component Summary Score from the SF-12. Fixed effects and dynamic linear models are estimated, which, together with the longitudinal nature of the data, enable person-specific traits that are time invariant to be controlled for. The incorporation of dynamics also reduces concerns about the potential effects of reverse causation. The results suggest that Overemployment (working more hours than desired) has adverse consequences for the mental health of workers in both countries. Underemployment (working fewer hours than desired), however, seems to only be of significance in Australia.
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Working Time Mismatch and Subjective Well-being
British Journal of Industrial Relations, 2009Co-Authors: Mark Wooden, Diana Warren, Robert DragoAbstract:This study uses nationally representative panel survey data for Australia to identify the role played by mismatches between hours actually worked and working time preferences in contributing to reported levels of job and life satisfaction. Three main conclusions emerge. First, it is not the number of hours worked that matters for subjective well-being, but working time mismatch. Second, Overemployment is a more serious problem than is underemployment. Third, while the magnitude of the impact of Overemployment may seem small in absolute terms, relative to other variables, such as disability, the effect is quite large.
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Preferred vs Actual Working Hours in Couple Households
2005Co-Authors: Yi-ping Tseng, Mark WoodenAbstract:Working hours in Australia are quite widely distributed around the population mean. That is, there are relatively many people working both relatively short hours and relatively long hours each week. From a welfare perspective, however, it is not the actual number of hours worked that is of importance, but whether the hours being worked are consistent with individual preferences. In this paper the question of how closely hours preferences are being met is examined using data collected in the first wave of the HILDA Survey. The study focuses specifically on workers in couple households. The analysis involved two main stages. In the first stage, evidence of a significant time divide - the co-existence of many people working part-time hours who would prefer to work longer and many people working very long hours who ould prefer to work fewer hours - is found. The extent of this time divide, however, should not be overstated - the hours of the majority of workers are still reasonably close to their stated preference. The second stage of the analysis focused on identifying the factors associated with mismatch in working hours preferences. The extent of Overemployment, for example, is found to rise with age, and is more pronounced among the self-employed and less pronounced among those with a recent history of unemployment. Underemployment, on the other hand, is also associated positively with self-employment, as well as with casual employment. Perhaps of most interest, we find that in couples preferred hours are influenced by whether or not, and the extent to which, partners achieve their working time preferences. That is, if one member of the couple is unable to work as many hours as desired, this leads their partner to prefer more hours.
