Higgins C, Duxbury L, Johnson K L
Human Resource Management, (USA), Spring 2000 Vol 39 No 1
Start page: 17. No of pages: 16

Points to the differences within women’s part-time work (skills needed, education levels required, pay levels and work environment) and argues that this diversity suggests that part-time work may not affect women’s ability to balance work and family equally. Divides women’s part-time work into two categories: career-oriented jobs (professionals and managers) and earner positions (technical, clerical, administrative, retail and production work). Surveys women in full and part-time work in both categories to understand how the category of job and its status (full or part-time) affects measures of work-life balance (i.e. overload, time management, etc.) and individual outcomes (stress, life satisfaction, etc.). Also interviews women about the perceived advantages/disadvantages of part-time work. Concludes that the research gives conditional support for the view that part-time work helps women to balance work and family, but finds that women in earner part-time positions gain more benefit than women in career part-time positions (the women in career-part-time positions reporting high role overload and high family to work interference). Discusses the implications of this for human resource management.

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The annual report of the Public Appointments Commissioner reveals that there is a long way to go to make public appointments truly representative and diverse. The report covers the 12,000 ministerial appointments to public bodies, including NHS Trusts. It shows that 39% of appointments were women, 8.9% were from ethnic minorities and 2.9% had a disability. Although these figures are an improvement on the previous year the percentage of women appointed is a long way from the target of 50%.The prime difficulty in making public appointments more representative is that women and people from the ethnic minorities do not offer themselves for appointment in sufficient numbers. This was highlighted in a recent survey which revealed that only 26% of local councillors are women. It identified practical barriers women face such as bearing the double burden of paid work and the main responsibility for childcare and housework.

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The Department for Education and Employment is setting up a new specialist team to help central departments work more closely with voluntary organisations to tackle poverty and social exclusion. The voluntary sector plays a key role in many programmes from childcare provision to community learning centres. The sector is also becoming increasingly important in responding to the welfare to work challenges.The new specialist team, which is due to start work in the autumn, will guide the DfEE in its dealings with voluntary organisations. It will develop a partnering programme to link DfEE staff directly with individual voluntary organisations to share knowledge and experience.

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