Employees’ work schedules vary from full-time to part-time to job shares. All work schedules have one thing in common; the employee is doing work required by an employer. Today’s employers understand that flexibility is what employees require in their work schedules. Make sure your approach to employee work schedules motivates and retains your best employees.
The following choices highlight work schedule options that employees love. Not every employee will love every work schedule, but some aspect of these work schedule choices will meet most of your employees’ needs. Here’s how you can negotiate the flex schedule of your dreams.
1. Work With a Flexible Schedule
A flexible schedule allows an employee to work hours that differ from the average company start and stop time. An appreciated benefit, flexible work schedules allow employees to maintain work and life balance.
Different flexible work schedules suit different employees’ busy lives. But, any employer flexibility in work schedules helps you motivate and retain your best employees.
2. Telecommuting
Telecommuting or working from home is a flexible work arrangement that enables an employee, a consultant, or a contractor, to work distantly from the employer’s location all or part of the time. Telecommuting is also an option for bad weather days and days that require an adult present in the home for events such as furniture delivery, furnace cleaning, and mid-day doctor appointments.
Some organizations allow regular telecommuting up to several days a week for most employees.
3. Share a Job
A job share occurs when two employees cooperatively share the same job. There are advantages, disadvantages, challenges, and opportunities when employees job share. As an employer, a job share can benefit both the employee and you. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of a job share.
4. Work Alternative Shifts
Shift work occurs in a work schedule that utilizes 24 hours a day and occasionally, seven days a week, to keep an organization operating. Shift work occurs whenever 24-hour coverage is necessary or when a 24 hour day optimizes work output and productivity.
But, some employees like a non-day shift work schedule. Families may want to avoid child care expenses with parents working different shifts. Some employees work two jobs or run a part-time enterprise from home.
5. Work as a Temporary Employee
Temporary employees are hired to assist employers in meeting business demands yet allow the employer to avoid the cost of hiring a regular employee. Sometimes, it is the expectation of the employer that if the temporary employee is successful, the temporary employee will be hired.
Maybe you’re an executive not quite ready to retire, but you don’t want an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. commitment at the same employer every day — so you temp. Perhaps your heart is in skiing, and the ski resorts call to you every winter.
6. Part Time Employee
A part-time employee has traditionally worked less than a 40 hour work week. Today, though, some employers count employees as full time if they work 30, 32, or 36 hours a week.
Consequently, the definition of a part-time employee will vary from organization to organization. But, a part-time work schedule affords some employees terrific flexibility. For some employees, part-time is the work schedule of choice.
7. Full Time Employee
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) does not define full-time employee or part-time employee. What is counted as a full-time employee is generally defined by the employer.
The definition of a full-time employee is often published in the employee handbook. Some people just want to be 8 a.m. — 5 p.m. full-time employees — trust this thought — really. Others seek all sorts of flexibility.
