The institutional context of a sustainable workforce

Item does not contain fulltextThis chapter analyzes the institutional context in which companies and their employees develop strategies to achieve high productivity and satisfaction in the nine European countries studied in this book. It examines the economic, labor market and demographic trends in recent years in the nine countries which were part of the European Sustainable Workforce Survey, and focuses on the commonality and variance in employment, work–family policies and health policies in each participating country. The chapter provides the reader with a background against which the results of the empirical chapters can be interpreted, and it facilitates a comparative perspective of the institutional structures. Alongside a shared body of European regulations which have led to harmonization in some parts of the EU, national contexts still vary widely with regard to the position of older workers, the provisions surrounding work–family compatibility and the importance of lifelong learning, implying variation in the institutional preconditions for creating a sustainable workforce

Het gebruik van een meerkeuzesysteem arbeidsvoorwaarden

Contains fulltext : 67429.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Keuzemodellen komen sinds het einde van de jaren tachtig in steeds meer Nederlandse organisaties voor. Zij bieden werknemers de mogelijkheid om de samenstelling van hun arbeidsvoorwaardenpakket te wijzigen, zodat zij die arbeidsvoorwaarden kunnen kiezen die het best bij hun situatie passen. Met behulp van logistische regressieanalyses onderzoekt de onderhavige studie het keuzegedrag van werknemers van een Nederlandse universiteit (N=488) in een dergelijk keuzemodel en de invloed van de werk- en huishouden- situatie op dit keuzegedrag. Daarbij wordt in het bijzonder aandacht besteed aan de keuze voor meer of minder verlof. Het onderzoek laat zien dat de werknemers vooral kiezen om verlof in te ruilen voor een andere, meestal financiële arbeidsvoorwaarde. Zowel de werk-, als de huishoudensituatie blijkt van invloed op de deelname aan het keuzemodel, en de keuze die werknemers binnen het keuzemodel maken. De mogelijkheid die een keuzemodel werknemers biedt om de samenstelling van hun beloning aan hun voorkeur aan te passen wordt door de werknemers van deze universiteit duidelijk benut

Fulfilling a sense of duty: how men and women giving care to spouses with multiple sclerosis interpret this role.

This qualitative study examines how spouses experience caregiving when predominantly motivated by a sense of duty and addresses whether any differences between female and male caregivers can be detected. For our purpose semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight male and five female caregivers providing total care to their spouses who are disabled as a result of multiple sclerosis (MS). The analysis consisted of fragmenting and connecting the data and involved close reading and constant comparison. Participants involved in this study maintain caregiving despite the unfavourable changes they have noticed in their relationships. They interpret caregiving as something they just have to do. Males and females develop different perspectives on caregiving, which are illustrated by two exemplary case stories that can be summarized respectively in the phrase ‘You have to be satisfied with it’, and as ‘I have to become harder and less self-sacrificing’. Explanations for these outcomes are sought in differences in moral orientations between women and men and in gender differences regarding their feelings of duty and rights. The results shed light on previous findings that female caregivers report more stress than male caregivers and as such pertain on the discussion on home health care.