The Growth of Part-Time Employment in the Service Sector: Employer Rationales and Trade Union Implications

Abstract

This research project set out to examine the factors determining the growth of part-time labour in the service sector in Great Britain and to consider the industrial implications of this growth. It is argued that the appropriate theoretical framework for analysing the demand for this form of labour starts from the position that managements labour use decisions are influenced, but not exclusively determined by, the range of products or service to be delivered and the nature of the production technology chosen. Given these decisions, how work is actually allocated and the mix of labour forms employed will be shaped by the economic environment within which the organisation operates; the constraints on labour utilisation applying within the organisation; and the labour supply conditions it experiences. The fact that each organisation is a physical entity shaped by its development and past decisions on technology, product lines, managerial styles, and so on, will ensure that even when these environmental factors apparently leave little room for manoeuvre organisations will not react uniformly across sectors or industries. Labour use decisions are not simply constrained by exogenous factors but also shaped by these internal considerations