Changing Work Patterns

Introductory Activity Investigate the history of the work done by your family members. Try and go back as many years as possible to find out the types of employment they undertook and how many different jobs they had. Present your findings as a family tree. Introductory Activity

Drivers of change Traditional work patterns are changing rapidly. Change in work patterns have arisen due to: The need to reduce labour costs The need to improve productivity Businesses aim to meet objectives by: Outsourcing labour Employing small full time staff, increasing casual and part time staff to meet demands during busy periods Implementing flexible working hours (direct result of improvements in telecommunications) Drivers of change

Examine the differences between past and present employment issues on page 105 – 106 of the text. Explain the changes in the three pictured. Activity

Activity

Technological changes Casualisation of the workforce Demographic Changes Technological changes Casualisation of the workforce

Demographic Changes Women make up 45% of workforce The current participation rate 65.6% Women attracted to workforce by increase in casual and part-time employment opportunities ‘Family friendly’ workplaces – motivate and retain staff Ageing society could see increase in retirement age Demographic Changes

Casualisation of the workforce Casual workers make up 25% of labour force Popular in retail and hospitality industries Most popular among 15 – 24 year olds (see next slide) No long term job security Casuals can be exploited Casualisation of the workforce

Casualisation of the workforce

Technological changes Working from home Decline in manufacturing industry Increases in service and information technology industries Ongoing training needed New jobs created as old jobs become obsolete Technological changes

Employment Stereotypes

A stereotype is an often oversimplified or biased mental picture held to characterise the typical individual of a group. What workplace stereotypes exist in society today?

Using your first impression, indicate beside each adjective below which sex the word best describes. Use M for Male, F for Female, and B for Both only if the word immediately brings to mind both men and women. Be honest and record your very first response! Stimulus exercise

entrepreneur scuba diver critical hiker funny cheerful likes children lifeguard intelligent good cook romantic fussy horseback rider skydiver impetuous impatient too sensitive persistent assertive intense nurturing committed talkative hates spiders dynamic aggressive fashionable independent daring competent outspoken compassionate driven logical intuitive gentle warm likes flowers self-starter emotional competitive football fan

Glancing over your responses, notice the number of M's, F's, and B's Glancing over your responses, notice the number of M's, F's, and B's. Most people get a good mix of all three. Looking at the list of adjectives, is there any one word that could not describe either sex? If not, then all the M's and F's recorded indicate subconscious (and sometimes not so subconscious) stereotypical beliefs. Keep in mind that simply believing that some of these descriptions are gender-based is not wrong, nor a "bad" thing to do. Stereotypes, after all, develop from observed behavioural generalities. Stimulus exercise

Activities (complete in workbook) Brainstorm the individual and social impacts of increased participation by females in the workforce. Read the article ‘Beware of Gender Stereotypes in the Workplace’ and outline the strategy suggested when dealing with workplace stereotypes. Briefly outline the purpose of the Anti- discrimination Act (NSW) Activities (complete in workbook)