Women's Preferences or Delineated Policies?
agreements in the UK regulate matters of part-time rights distinctively less than even those in
Germany, let alone the Netherlands. The lack of statutory or voluntary regulation combined with
the growth of the service sector allowed UK employers to cater to consumer-oriented services,
contributing to the growth of part-time work, small hours and very long hours, as well as unsocial
hours, leaving employees with little control over their working times. Employers also often created
low-skilled positions to restrict training costs, thereby increasing the number of low-skilled part-
time jobs. British trade unions did little to halt these developments, and often remained supportive
of overtime and unsocial hours working, with rendered extra pay (Fagan and Rubery, 1997). In the
context of the recent activities of the government to promote a better work-family balance, the
social partners have been more vocal. The Trades’ Union Congress (TUC), the main spokesman for
labour representing 71 British unions, now focuses on work-family issues, with an entire section of
its website dedicated to ‘changing times,’ (www.tuc.org.uk) and it is seeking “partnership” on this
issue with employers. While TUC is enthusiastic about the new working time legislation, they are
concerned that the legislation is not tough enough, providing employers with the means to reject
employee requests.
The reaction of employers’ organizations is mixed. While the Confederation of British Industry
(CBI) responded favourably to the new working time legislation, the Institute of Directors (IoD)
condemned the legislation as harmful to businesses, claiming that it will cause conflicts in the
workplace (EIRO, 2003d). The CBI also expressed some concerns regarding the costs and
consequences of such legislation for the preferences of employees without children who will now
want to create flexible working times as well.
Despite current similar campaigns to promote work-family balance, the development of part-time
work differs from both Germany and the Netherlands in many respects. Precisely because of a lack
of government labour market regulation, part-time work was allowed to expand and grow.
Employers made use of the liberal labour market to promote consumer-oriented part-time jobs in
the service sector and low-skilled part-time jobs. British part-time jobs lack the rights and quality
often found in part-time jobs in the Netherlands. A working hours culture of extremes developed in
the UK and consequently, part-time jobs are often short-hours positions with lower pay and poor
benefits. All this means that most part-time jobs are far from the aspirations and standards of
“decent work”. The gendered nature of part-time work reinforces that conclusion, although that is
an issue in all three countries. However, in the UK, the issue of entrapment into low skilled, low-
paid and unprotected part-time jobs is mainly an issue for women, and is much more pervasive than
in the other two countries. This is reinforced by the short supply of accessible and affordable
childcare facilities and the very minimalistic application of relevant EU regulations on maximum
working hours, paternal leave, irregular work and part-time employment.
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