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Part time work has long been associated as a form of employment for ‘working mothers’, a means to earning a salary that allows her the flexibility to also manage the kids.
It’s even seen as a form of working that allows concessions for women to spend less time in the office as she tends to other commitments – often ignoring the fact she’s also earning a ‘part time salary’ and may well be just as productive as her full time colleagues.
Indeed, this Financial Review article from 2013 is testament to such assumptions in which the surprise conclusion that women working flexibly can actually be valuable contributors starts with the phrase, “Far from dragging the chain …”
But assuming only working mothers need or desire part time work can be dangerous in perpetuating long-held stereotypes regarding who can and can’t request such forms of work.
The reality is that a large segment of part time workers do not have young children. More than half (53%) of women working part time have no children under 12, according to ABS research commissioned by Optimiss Consulting.
I’ve heard some excellent reasons for men and women pursuing part time roles that extend beyond a desire or need to spend more time with kids, even in seemingly ‘inflexible’ professions such as law and finance. Such ‘justifications’ include everything from learning a new language, to working on a book-writing project, training to climb Mount Everest and even pursuing a career as a stand-up comedian on the side of a day job.
But too often it seems employees feel the need to explain their reasons for pursuing part time work with some kind of extensive side project. A desire to simply determine a work/life schedule that’s different to the Monday to Friday, nine to five, isn’t always a good enough reason. Instead, you need to be pursuing some form of self-improvement, or be a mother, or working in such an arrangement because your employer can’t afford to give you more hours.
We can only hope that with more Generation Y employee expressing a desire to work part time, and an increasing number of websites and recruiters popping up dedicated to promoting part time work opportunities, that this form of working is mainstreamed beyond being the domain of ‘working mothers’ alone, or for those who have no other choice.
Rather than dismiss part timers as employees who need to prove they’re not “dragging the chain” it would be beneficial to see what they can really offer: productivity, efficiency and a deeper pool of available talent. Their desire or need to have time to pursue activities outside of work – be that childcare responsibilities, caring for an elderly parent or even training for a marathon – should be welcomed as a reflection of their diversity and ability to achieve in multiple life spheres.
Part time workers don’t look like mums. They don’t look like women. They don’t look like Generation Y. They don’t look like semi-retirees, or people who simply can’t cope with a full time workload. Nor do they necessarily reflect individuals who have no choice but to work part time.
Rather, they look like men and women who see the benefits of a multi-faceted life, those who’re willing to challenge traditional notions of job structures and create office hours and output indicators that suit what they have to offer.