Part‐time work and perception of life satisfaction
Part time work is a direct product of globalization. More dynamic and competitive labor markets require new forms of employments that are flexible, increase efficiency and stimulate competitiveness. This explains why part time work as such has become more diffuse in many Western European countries, including also Italy in the later years.
At the micro level, part time work offers flexibility and adaptability to employers but is also attractive among workers and among workers, notably among women. The reason for the latter is its role in the reconciliation of the “conflict” between work and family, which mostly affects women given that they are responsible for home matters despite working. Indeed, part time work enables an individual to manage the time more effectively and balance better between the two aspects of privatelife. However, it is also true that part‐time jobs are often limiting because they are concentrated in certain sectors, might offer comparatively worse career prospects and might belong to the category of “lower importance” jobs. This is exactly why it is difficult to provide a clear cut on the topic.
But, rather than focusing on advantages and disadvantages of part time work in comparison to full time, based on objective evaluation, this paper intends to provide a comparison of different perceptions of satisfaction that are experienced by female employees prforming these jobs.
Several main hypotheses are tested; the hypothesis that women who work part time will experience higher satisfaction with the division of their time within and ouside of the family was confirmed in the data. Similarly, the hypothesis that part time workers experience better time management was in accordance with the final results. The hypotheses on life satisfaction, however, were not fully justified with the data. Socio demographic characteristics bring changes in patterns of life satisfaction but not always in the expected direction. Overall, women who work part time are less satisfied with their life when compared to full‐time workers.
Kulic, N.