Negotiating Shorter Working Hours

251 Pages·1985·51.209 MB·English

by  Alastair Evans, Stephen Palmer (auth.)

NEGOTIATING SHORTER WORKING HOURS
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS IN PRACTICE
GENERAL EDITOR: Jim Matthewman
Industrial Relations in Practice is a new series intended for
personnel managers, union negotiators, employees, welfare
advisers and lawyers. With an emphasis on current practice in
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an overall independent stance, with titles aimed at both sides
of industry. The various authors, who have been selected from
management, independent research groups and labour organi
sations, address themselves to topics of immediate and practi
cal concern to the workforce of today and those responsible for
its management.
Edward Benson
A GUIDE TO REDUNDANCY LAW
Gary Bowker
DISCRIMINATION AT WORK
Robin Chater
THE TREATMENT OF SPECIAL CASES IN
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Alastair Evans and Stephen Palmer
NEGOTIATING SHORTER WORKING HOURS
Susan Shortland
MANAGING RELOCATION
Further titles in preparation
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NEGOTIATING SHORTER
WORKING HOURS
Alastair Evans and Stephen Palmer
M
MACMILLAN
© Alastair Evans and Stephen Palmer 1985
All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission
of this publication may be made without written permission.
No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied
or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance
with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1956 (as amended).
Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to
this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and
civil claims for damages.
First published 1985
Published by
THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 2XS
and London
Companies and representatives
throughout the world
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Evans, Alastair
Negotiating shorter working hours.
(Industrial relations in practice)
1. Hours of labour - Great Britain
I. Title I. Palmer, Stephen III. Series
331.25'7'0941 HD5165
ISBN 978-0-333-38858-7 ISBN 978-1-349-07884-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-07884-4
Contents
List of Tables and Figures vi
Introduction x
PART I CHANGING TRENDS IN BASIC HOURS
AND OVERTIME
1 Working Time in Context 3
2 Alternative Patterns of Working Hours 47
3 Overtime Working 67
4 Introducing a Shorter Working Week For
Dayworkers 92
PART II SHIFfWORK AND SHORTER
WORKING HOURS
5 Shiftwork - Making the Decision
6 The Costs of Shiftwork
7 Shift Systems, Choice and Shorter Working Hours
Postscript: Future Trends in Working Hours 210
Appendix A Legislation on Working Hours 214
Appendix B Legal Restrictions on Overtime Working in
Western Europe 219
Appendix C Detailed Analysis of Overtime Working by
Industrial Sector 221
Appendix D Comparison of 4, 4~ and 5 Crew working
at average basic working weeks of3 5, 38
and 40 hours, to provide continuous cover 227
Notes and References 229
Index 236
List of Tables and Figures
Table 1.1 Normal and actual weekly hours of male
manual workers, 1945-83 14
Table 1.2 The actual weekly hours of manual women,
1945-83 17
Table 1.3 Normal and actual weekly hours of non-
manual men and women, 1970-83 19
Table 1.4 Average weekly hours of manual workers in
Western European countries, 1970-80 20
Table 1.5 Average weekly hours in excess of 41, EEC
1981 22
Table 1.6 Holiday entitlement in Western Europe,
1983 (engineering industry) 24
Table 1.7 Annual working hours of manual workers in
Western Europe, 1983 (engineering industry) 24
Table 1.8 Basic and actual hours of manual workers by
industry, April 1983 30
Table 1.9 Basic and actual hours of non-manuals by
industry, April 1983 32
Table 1.10 Distribution of normal basic hours by indus-
try group: manual full-time men, April 1983 36
Table 1.11 Distribution of normal basic hours by indus-
try group: manual full-time women, April
1983 38
Table 1.12 Distribution of normal basic hours by indus-
try group: non-manual full-time men, April
1983 40
Table 1.13 Distribution of normal basic hours by indus-
try group: non-manual full-time women,
April 1983 42
Table 1.14 Agreements on shorter working hours for
manual workers, 1980-3 44
Table 1.15 Hours' reduction in manual workers' agree-
ments, 1980-3 44
Table 1.16 Agreements on shorter working hours for
VI
List of Tables and Figures
Vll
non-manual workers (198~3) 45
Table 1.17 Hours' reductions in non-manual workers'
agreements: 198~3 46
Figure 1.1 Normal and actual weekly hours of male
manual workers, 1945-83 16
Table 2.1 Trends in part-time working 1951-80 49
Table 2.2 Employment of part-time employees 1971-8
(GB): leading growth sectors 51
Table 2.3 Growth in part-time employment as a pro
portion of growth in total employment in the
service sector, 1971-8 (GB) 51
Table 2.4 Full- and part-time working by industry
(1981: GB) 52
Table 2.5 Full- and part-time working by occupation
(1981: GB) 53
Table 2.6 Married women's part-time hours (1981) 56
Table 2.7 Hours of work of manual and non-manual
part-time women: all industries and services,
April 1983 56
Figure 2.1 Age composition of men and women working
part-time (1981) 55
Table 3.1 Lowest and highest levels of male manual
worker overtime (hours per week) 69
Table 3.2 Lowest and highest overtime (hours per
week) by industrial sub-sector 69
Table 3.3 Overtime working by industry group, April
1983 70
Table 3.4 Average overtime hours by occupation 72
Table 3.5 Overtime working by occupation, April 1983 72
Table 3.6 Analysis of overtime working by age-group,
April 1983 73
Table 3.7 Overtime working by region, April 1983 74
Table 3.8 Importance of reasons for overtime working
as stated by employers 75
Table 3.9 Quarterly index of number of operatives
working overtime in manufacturing indus
tries, 1975-84 (GB) 78
Table 3.10 Cost of overtime hours by occupation (full
time manual men) 81
Table 3.11 Annual average overtime premia: all manual
men, 1974-83 81
viii List of Tables and Figures
Table 3.12 Occupational analysis of pay and hours of
full-time manual males, 1979 83
Table 3.13 Perceived employee attitudes to overtime 86
Table 3.14 Perceived union attitudes to overtime 87
Table 4.1 Firms introducing shorter hours before the
implementation date set by national agree-
ment 93
Table 4.2 Success in offsetting the cost of shorter
working hours by industry 98
Table 4.3 Percentage of firms bound by productivity
clauses in shorter working hours agreement 113
Table 4.4 Percentage of firms linking productivity im-
provements to shorter hours 114
Table 4.5 Measures taken by firms linking productivity
increases to shorter hours 115
Table 4.6 Changes introduced to promote flexibility in
different worker groups 127
Table 4.7 Changes in the pattern of manual workers'
hours following reductions in the basic week 129
Table 5.1 Reasons given by employers for using shift-
work 142
Table 5.2 Comparisons of productivity as between day
and night shifts 146
Table 5.3 Male occupations with shiftwork consider-
ably above the average 149
Table 5.4 Percentage of male manual employees re-
ceiving shift payments 150
Table 5.5 Percentage of manual employees receiving
shift pay by region 152
Table 5.6 Frequency of observed disorders, among 350
workers, expressed as a percentage of the
number of workers in each category 157
Table 5.7 Percentage of employees receiving shift pay
by age group 160
Figure 5.1 Circadian rhythm 156
Table 6.1 Shift premia falling in percentage rates 165
Table 6.2 Computer operators' pay 169
Table 6.3 Absence of shiftworkers compared with day-
workers 171
Table 6.4 Provision of meals (1975) 172
Table 6.5 Provision of meals (1979) 172
List of Tables and Figures IX
Table 6.6 Forecast results for different shift systems 176
Table 6.7 Comparison of systems of costs of production 178
Table B.1 Maximum hours overtime permitted 220
Table C.1 Detailed analysis of overtime working by
industrial sector, April 1983 221