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Managing reductions in working hours: a study of work-time and leisure preferences in UK industry

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Author Info
Dan Wheatley
Irene Hardill
Bruce Philp
Abstract

This paper is predicated on the view that reductions in work-time are generally desirable. We analyse historical trends in working-hours, the organisation of production, and theories of power and authority in firms and other organisations. Then we consider this in relation to patterns of work in the UK, demonstrating empirically that managers are more wedded to a ‘long-hours’ culture than are other employees. We theorise that this is because managers’ roles align their attitudes with those desired by the firm or organisation and conclude that, as a consequence, the “voluntary” nature of work-time regulation should be revisited.

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File URL: http://www.ntu.ac.uk/research/document_uploads/85415.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function: First version, 2008
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham Business School, Economics Division in its series Working Papers with number 2008/5.

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Date of creation: Jun 2008
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Handle: RePEc:nbs:wpaper:2008/5

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Web page: http://www.ntu.ac.uk/nbs

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Related research
Keywords: Working hours; Hierarchy; Power; Preferences;

Find related papers by JEL classification:
J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
J53 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Labor-Management Relations; Industrial Jurisprudence

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. RenÈ B–heim & Mark P. Taylor, 2003. "Option Or Obligation? The Determinants Of Labour Supply Preferences In Britain," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 71(2), pages 113-131, 03. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Joao Ricardo Faria & Miguel A. Leon-Ledesma, 2004. "Habit formation, work ethics and technological progress," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 72(3), pages 403-413, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. John MacInnes, 2005. "Work-Life Balance and the Demand for Reduction in Working Hours: Evidence from the British Social Attitudes Survey 2002," British Journal of Industrial Relations, Blackwell Publishers Ltd/London School of Economics, vol. 43(2), pages 273-295, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Francis Green, 2001. "It's Been A Hard Day's Night: The Concentration and Intensification of Work in Late Twentieth-Century Britain," British Journal of Industrial Relations, Blackwell Publishers Ltd/London School of Economics, vol. 39(1), pages 53-80, 03. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Shapiro, Carl & Stiglitz, Joseph E, 1984. "Equilibrium Unemployment as a Worker Discipline Device," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 74(3), pages 433-44, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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