Newborns and new schools: critical times in women's employment

This report presents the findings of research into how and when differences in work behaviour between men and women develop, focusing on the evolution of the gender gaps immediately after childbirth and during the initial years of family development. The analysis presented focuses on two crucial periods in family development: when a new baby arrives and when a child starts school. The study uses two data sources: the first thirteen waves from the British Household Panel Survey covering the years 1991 to 2003 and the first five waves from the Families and Children Study covering the years 1999 to 2003

The consistency and reliability of the activity history data in the Families and Children Study (FACS)

The purpose of this report is to examine the consistency and reliability of the activity history data collected in the FACS. Using data from the first five waves of the FACS and from the first thirteen waves of the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) as a comparison survey, carefully matched samples have been analysed to calibrate the completeness and consistency of the activity history data collected in the FACS and to test whether the FACS generates labour market statistics similar to the comparison survey

Submission to the Work and Pensions Select Committee Inquiry: 'How can suitable, affordable childcare be provided for all parents who need it to enable them to work?'

This briefing note is provided as evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee as to whether childcare could be provided for all parents who need it to help them to work. It looks at the ways in which this could be achieved

Families and Children Strategic Analysis Programme (FACSAP): Reviewing approaches to understanding the link between childcare use and mothers' employment

This report was commissioned through the Department for Work and Pensions' Families and Children Strategic Analysis Programme (FACSAP). It examines methods that could potentially be used to explore the link between mothers' demand for childcare and their employment. Several approaches are examined, including: learning from evaluations of existing programmes; the scope for natural experiments and the potential for reduced form and structural modelling of key relationships. The report focuses on methodology but in doing so presents findings from existing studies in the area, most of which are from the United States

The living standards of families with children reporting low incomes

The Government has high-profile child poverty targets which are assessed using a measure of income, as recorded in the Household Below Average Income series (HBAI). However, income is an imperfect measure of living standards. Previous analysis suggests that some children in households with low income do not have commensurately low living standards. This report aims to document the extent to which this is true, focusing on whether children in low-income households have different living standards depending on whether their parents are employed, self-employed, or workless

Barriers to volunteering by newcomers in Wheatbelt towns in Western Australia

Many organisations involving volunteers in regional towns have reported experiencing difficulties in maintaining their numbers of volunteers due, in part, to the changing demographics being experienced in regional areas across Australia. In Western Australia there is evidence that the volunteer rate for non-metropolitan areas has declined approximately 7% between 2000 and 2006 (FHCSIA, 2009). Populations across the non-metropolitan regions have not all declined, with areas such as the Pilbara and other mining regions experiencing a significant boom in recent times. Other areas, including those with agriculture as the focus, have experienced declining numbers, especially of young people. These changing demographics can have a significant effect on the ability of the community organisations to provide services, maintain the welfare, recreational and leisure activities in the region, and sustain the community development activities which assist in keeping towns operating. In the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia there are variations in population which vary from town to town, with some places experiencing an influx of newcomers and others reporting noticeable declines. As has been discussed in the companion report (see Volunteering WA, 2009), the twin results of these population changes are the pressures on community organisations to sustain volunteering in order to provide local services. Emergency services such as the Bushfire Brigades and the St John Ambulance Service rely on increasingly diminishing numbers of volunteers, while at the same time having to cope with increasing levels of regulation and control. Services to the sick and elderly experience greater demands as the population ages, but they too are increasingly unable to meet those demands. Sporting and leisure organisations find it difficult to field and support teams or provide committees to run the organisations, and community events such as annual field days rely on the same group of volunteers to run the events every year. Anecdotally, newcomers to town are said to be less and less willing to involve themselves in volunteer work and community organisations. It is the view of those involved in community development in the Wheatbelt region that in order to ensure the growth of strong, healthy communities, newly arrived residents in these towns can and need to be enticed into volunteering, and encouraged to stay, thus enhancing the community’s capacity to deliver volunteer emergency services and other desired community activities. This component of the Better Connections research project has been to identify barriers which prevent newcomers from volunteering or from continuing to volunteer

Public sector work intensification and negative behaviors

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore issues associated with sector specific change in the Australian Public Service (APS). Evidence is presented on the impact of New Public Management (NPM) on work intensification and subsequent negative behaviors by giving voice to APS employees who were subject to the NPM changes. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from APS employees, human resource managers and policy makers across 11 agencies on the nature of the changes, context of work, and workplace interactions. The study adopted a triangulated mixed method interpretivist approach using a survey instrument, stories, focus groups, and interviews. Findings – The NPM changes were aimed at creating a more professional and accountable APS. This resulted in individual agencies pursuing different approaches to productivity and efficiency while being accountable to the public and the government within a tight regulatory framework. These changes created competing priorities, affected the nature of the work through intensification, and fueled workplace tensions, thus affecting progress toward the goals of NPM. Practical implications – The findings of this study will be useful in alerting organizational leaders of possible unintended negative consequences of poorly implemented change programs. Originality/value – This current study provides evidence that the negative behaviors which arise from the implementation of efficiency focussed change can be damaging to individuals, the nature of work, and therefore organizations and the outcomes sought. Many change management activities in the public sector can lead to negative behaviors if implemented in a way lacking in respect for staff

Debate: ‘Robust performance management’ or workplace bullying? Not just the ‘what’ but the ‘how’

There is a very fine and difficult to detect line between what can be called ‘robust performancfae management’ and workplace bullying. Most policies, guidance notes, codes of practice and legislative provisions are clear in that ‘reasonable management’ action does not constitute workplace bullying. But what is ‘reasonable management’ action? And are these few simple words enough to delineate justified management behaviour for corrective action from workplace bullying behaviour that is abusive, unfair, harsh, aggressive, ‘over-the-top’, ‘nit-picky’ and unrelenting? This distinction is more complicated than it first appears. A study of workplace bullying in the Australian public service found that a small number of victims reported increased productivity after being bullied. This may point to a number of scenarios, including the alleged victims’ performance having been sub-standard in the first place, and/or manager action having had positive effects on productivity, quality of work and output. It may also be that the alleged victims pushed themselves even harder in response to being bullied, and performed better in the hope that the bullying would stop. So, is this robust performance management and therefore ‘reasonable management’ action, or is it workplace bullying? The answer here is not only about the ‘what’, but also the ‘how’

Critical friends: Reflections on peer review of teaching

Specific examples of peer reviews of teaching in business disciplines are limited in the literature, yet peer review helps academics improve their teaching practice, develops collegial and collaborative relationships and engenders reflective practice. This paper provides a case study action learning example of a critical friend peer review of teaching practice over one semester. Instead of focussing on standard classroom teaching practice, this peer dialogue differed from more traditional approaches by focussing on those students outside the classroom: external and transnational. An emergent framework for peers to reference in conducting their own peer review of their teaching practice is presented. Limitations in the scope and scale of the review are noted and implications for future peer reviews are discussed