TRENAIL COMPUTER SOLUTIONS

Work Patterns
The recent developments in ICT, however, have brought about four main areas where the working
patterns have changed. These are:

 Part-time
 Job sharing
 Flexible working
 Compressed hours.

Let us try to look at each of these in detail.

Part-time

Part-time working is when an individual decides to work only a few hours compared to someone
working full-time. If a typical day's work is 8hrs, for example, a part-time worker may work for 4hrs or
5hrs, just anything less than the 8hrs. Their pay also is adjusted so they may get paid less than a full-time
worker. Of course, this has some advantages as the employee could create time for other things when
they are not working. It is common for students in universities to take up part-time jobs ranging from
restaurant attendants, baby sitters, and others after classes.

Job sharing

Job sharing refers to two part-time workers doing the same job but at
different times. For example, one part-time worker may work from
8am to 12pm and another may operate from 12pm to 4pm. This
work pattern has a significant advantage to the organisation in that
they will always have more than one person who has the same skill
set. If the other person is sick or stops work, for example, the
organisation can still utilise the services of the other part-time
employee as they look for a replacement.

Flexible working

Flexible working, also known as flexi-time, is perhaps one of my favourites. With this kind of work
pattern, the employee agrees with his or her employer about when to work. Of course, he or she is still
expected to do a full day's work but is at liberty to choose the start and finish times, hence the name
flexible working. This work pattern benefits both the employer and employee. For the employee, they
can work at a time that is convenient for them. For the employer, they can remain open for a long time
even after regular working hours, and that would be extra revenue for them.
 TRENAIL COMPUTER SOLUTIONS
Work Patterns

Compressed hours

Compressed hours is where an employee decides to be working a few hours in a day or week but does
the same amount of work equivalent to a day or week. For example, if a shift in a day is 9hrs or 45hrs a
week, an employee can agree with his or her employer to be working 15hrs a day. With this pattern, it
will only take three days, and he or she would have met the 45hrs weekly shift. The other two days, the
employee won't be expected to report for work.