Two researchers from the infamous Social Science Research of Berlin (WZB) looked into part-time practices among management in 19 European countries, from data gathered by the EU in 2009. They point out that mindsets are starting to change among corporate managements, which are slowly realizing that part-time for executives has advantages. The figures show that the practice sill isn’t widespread and that there are large gaps depending on the country’s culture, the size of the company, and the sector. The ratio between part-time among employees and executives and the work culture are some of the elements explaining the spread of part-time work among managers. (Ref. 130335)
Strong mental and cultural barriers. From data collected in 19 European countries in 2009 and based on the international definition of part-time work (30 hours or less per week), Lena Hipp and Stefan Stuth, two researchers from the WZB’s “Work and Support” department, compared the spread of part-time work among managers. Pointing to a growing interest, at least in theory, from corporate managements, they note that objective reluctance to part-time in practice mostly comes from organizational and mental habits that it is sometimes hard to shake, despite the financial aspect (the proportional pay cut) which is less of an issue among executives than among “simple” employees.
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