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The concept of quality of work-life is not new but with the changing pace of life and increases in stress levels negatively affecting the quality of work, organisations have begun to think about the strategies for maintaining a work life balance. There is a strong link between quality of work-life and reduced absenteeism, increased productivity and job satisfaction. Other benefits include improved recruitment and retention rates with associated cost savings, reduced stress, greater levels of job satisfaction and loyalty, and an improved corporate image. The quality of work-life strategy offers a variety of ways to reduce stress levels and increase job satisfaction of employees. This study focuses on: comparing employees' perception towards quality of work-life variables in five different sectors (steel, power, banking, education, and mining); and finding out which factors contribute significantly to satisfaction of employees with reference to quality of work-life.

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Earlier research published in this journal examined factors associated with various forms of job satisfaction among part-time faculty, both at four-year institutions and community colleges. This research forwarded conclusions at odds with popular accounts regarding part-time faculty. Specifically, it was demonstrated that part-time faculty were satisfied with their roles, were pursuing the careers they had planned for, had reached a degree of satisfaction with their decisions to pursue part-time roles, agreed they would repeat their decision to pursue part-time roles, and indicated a stronger commitment to their institutions than their full-time faculty counterparts. These findings, based upon responses to the 1992-1993 National Survey of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF), could be argued to be artifacts of the sample of faculty responding to the 1993 survey. Since then, NSOPF has published data from its 2004 survey. This paper reexamines the findings of the original research, testing the extent to which those findings continue to be observed a decade later. It also disaggregates the part-time faculty group to examine differences between voluntary and involuntary part-timers.

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The construction of meaningfulness at work impacts on individual, psychological and work-related outcomes. The meaningfulness of work, however, in the context of women leaders working in higher education institutions (HEIs), has not yet been comprehensively researched and understood in South Africa and internationally. This article explores the perspectives on meaningfulness of work for women leaders working in HEIs in South Africa and internationally. With regard to meaningfulness at work, limited research exists on HEIs in South Africa and internationally. This needs to be explored in-depth from emic female perspectives to contribute both to the benefit of women working in HEIs and to the transformation goals of organisations. The data from a qualitative research study within the phenomenological paradigm are presented. The research methods included the collection and analysis of 29 in-depth interviews with South African and international women leaders working in academic and administrative positions in HEIs. The findings showed that women leaders in HEIs connect meaningfulness to five main categories, namely, career, life values, spirituality, race and gender identity. HEIs need to focus more on the construction of meaningfulness at work for women leaders so as to provide empowering working conditions. This article contributes to the limited literature on meaningfulness at work for women leaders within HEIs. It also provides conclusions and recommendations.

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In March 2001, the UK government launched the Teacher Pay Initiative (TPI) and, subsequently, the College Pay Initiative. The purpose of these initiatives was to provide both an incentive and a reward to further education staff who make a significant contribution to raising standards, in particular student retention and achievement rates. The initiatives were also intended to facilitate the recruitment, retention and reward of high quality teaching staff in further education colleges. This publication reports on a small-scale evaluative study of the impact of the initiatives in 13 further education colleges that was undertaken as the initiatives were approaching the end of their operation. The research aimed to: (1) assess how effectively the initiatives had met their objectives; (2) assess their impact upon teachers, support staff and managers; (3) examine how institutions had used the funds available to them; (4) assess the impact of the initiatives on college performance and whether any sustained advantages had accrued to FE institutions; and (5) report on any lessons learned for future initiatives. Some key findings were that: TPI and its variations have facilitated some pay system reform; in some cases, the introduction of TPI had a positive impact on recruitment and retention difficulties and skill shortages; and overall, TPI was well received by stakeholders but the positive impact on morale was often dampened by issues related to its introduction and administration. Show less

This paper investigates how the peer gender composition in university affects students' major choices and labor market outcomes. Women who are randomly assigned to more female peers become less likely to choose male-dominated majors and end up in jobs where they earn less but are more satisfied. Men become more likely to choose male-dominated majors when exposed to more female peers, but their labor market outcomes are not affected. Our results suggest that the increase in female university enrollment over the last decades has paradoxically contributed to occupational segregation among university graduates that persists in today's labor market.

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Older women represent an increasing proportion of Australia's paid labour force. Lacking is an understanding of how the nature of the contractual arrangement between worker and employer is associated with women's retirement intentions. Utilising data from a national survey of older women and employment, regression analysis is reported that tests the association between contractual arrangements and other meso level factors on the number of years until respondents' intended retirement. Taking a range of factors into account, it is found that those in casual employment anticipate retiring later than those with other employment arrangements. It is argued that, firstly, there is definitional ambiguity about flexible working that renders present calls for its promotion for older workers potentially problematical; secondly, policy continues to focus on an androcentric norm which presents risks for women in negotiating retirement; and, thirdly, a pro-work agenda for older people needs to have job quality as a core value.

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In-work training is generally regarded as beneficial for employees and in Britain it continues to offer significant gains in earnings. However, little previous research has tested whether training also leads to higher levels of job satisfaction or 'happiness'. Employers need to retain trained employees in order to make training cost-effective, but this may clash with employees' career aims if they view external job mobility as a better strategy, for instance because of reduced internal promotion opportunities. Using panel survey data for the 1990s and the 2000s, and considering four different aspects of job satisfaction, this research finds that job mobility, usually regarded as inimical to in-firm training provision, is associated consistently with gains in job satisfaction, while receipt of training has effects on satisfaction that are mostly close to zero. Further, job satisfaction is high in circumstances where financial returns to training are low, and vice versa. Finally, we find that training inhibits mobility, probably a good outcome for employers but not necessarily for employees.

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This report provides an overview of the physiotherapy workforce in Victoria in 2015-2016. It is based on survey responses from 1,037 individual physiotherapists (approximately 15 per cent of the physiotherapy workforce identified by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) or 15 per cent physiotherapists registered with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia), three focus groups involving 17 participants, and surveys from 73 organisations providing services across 299 different locations or sites. Female and older employees were over-represented in the survey sample compared to 2016 registration and 2015 workforce data.

The picture of workforce supply and demand for physiotherapy was mixed. As with other allied health (AH) professions, there has been a rapid growth in new graduates entering the physiotherapy profession, (AIHW, 2016) and increasing competition for jobs, particularly in the public sector. Despite this, there is anecdotal evidence of substantial unmet demand for physiotherapy services in the community. Some advertised physiotherapy positions receive more than 50 applications. Yet around 50 per cent of organisations said that they experience shortages of physiotherapists across lower and higher grades and vacant senior positions can take more than six months to fill. Indicators of workforce shortages include lack of services, service rationing, long waiting lists, increased delegation to [allied health assistants] AHAs and physiotherapists appointed at grades higher than their levels of skill or qualification.

The self-reported attrition rate from the physiotherapy workforce is 2 per cent in the next 12 months increasing to 27 per cent in five years. Approximately 15 per cent of physiotherapists propose to change their job within 12 months. The majority of participants said that they were moving to take up better job opportunities, better pay or better working conditions. Recruitment and retention of physiotherapists was more challenging in regional, rural and some outer metropolitan areas than in inner-metropolitan regions. Rural and regional employers face challenges including competition for staff with metropolitan employers, perceived lack of career development and continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities, as well as the more generalist nature of the work. Regional university training courses were seen to increase rural physiotherapy capacity and keep clinicians in regional/rural areas. Some organisations fund physiotherapy positions on short term, temporary or part-time contracts which are less attractive from a recruitment perspective.

Leadership from senior roles is necessary both to build advocacy on behalf of patients and the profession and to provide governance structures for more junior staff, regardless of their employment location. There are relatively few senior physiotherapy positions. Yet some organisations expressed challenges recruiting to senior physiotherapy roles, suggesting a lack of succession planning within the profession. Workforce capacity development and career advancement of the physiotherapy workforce requires access to CPD, particularly in rural areas. Other enablers include support from management, time, funding and availability of appropriate CPD. Failure to provide these enablers limits clinicians' ability to access further training which would provide career opportunities and advance the profession in its ability to meet community health need.

Physiotherapists have a high level of career satisfaction. While most are satisfied with the type of work they perform and the clients they work with, they would like to see improvements in their pay, professional development and career advancement opportunities. Physiotherapists are motivated by achieving a positive work/life balance, the type of work they do and clients they work with, and by having access to professional development opportunities. There was a suggestion that the physiotherapy profession should aim to attract students on the basis of their interpersonal skills and a desire to work with people, rather than academic ability. More appropriate marketing to prospective students may influence their ultimate career satisfaction and retention. There were no systemic skills gaps identified within physiotherapy, however several organisations identified specific skills that would be of benefit locally, including a mixture of clinical skills, knowledge of the health system, and supervision skills. Improved access to CPD may be a way to resolve several local skills gaps.

Key areas of consideration for the physiotherapy workforce going forward include: (1) Developing metrics of community need/demand for physiotherapy services; (2) Increasing evidence and knowledge base of the professions models of care to improve referrals and business cases for optimal staffing levels to improve patient outcomes; (3) Undertake modelling around AH, nursing and medical staffing numbers and mix that ensure optimal service capacity and health outcomes; (4) Improving health service workforce and succession planning to best meet community health need; (5) Improving clinical governance and support, particularly for private practitioners and those working for a large number of different employers; (6) Ensuring adequate supply and skills for growing areas of need, including acute and sub-acute areas, aged care, disability, complex patients and interdisciplinary roles; (7) Addressing attrition by providing support, flexibility and a career opportunities; (8) Developing business case's for areas in which physiotherapy can add value to the patient pathway including referral, diagnostic and treatment pathways, which are currently restricted by professional boundaries, funding models or organisational norms; and (9) Exploring workforce capacity opportunities such as skills that current physiotherapists bring from previous careers, current and potential interdisciplinary and advanced scope roles.

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This article considers the impact of flexible working arrangements (FWAs), using the British Household Panel Survey and Understanding Society, 2001-10/11. Results of panel logit, ANCOVA and change-score analysis are indicative of positive impacts from use of a number of FWAs, including homeworking having positive effects for men and women on job and leisure satisfaction. However, findings reveal gaps in availability and use of FWAs, and highlight the gendered nature of flexible employment. Flexi-time, the most common FWA among men, has positive effects as it facilitates management of household responsibilities while maintaining full-time employment. Part-time and homeworking are also positive, consistent with men using FWAs with a greater degree of choice. Women more often are constrained in their use of FWAs, often into working reduced hours. Consequently, FWAs have negative impacts for some women, on job (part-time when used for extended periods, flexi-time), leisure (job-share, flexi-time) and life satisfaction (job-share).

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Humanity teeters on a critical precipice for future survival. Human activities especially our proliferating consumption levels are destroying our planet and increasing the misery of precarity, inequality, and exploitation of millions of people worldwide. Forced labour, modern slavery, and human trafficking are at least indecent and at worst obscene work, which takes place in fragile ecosystems facing irreversible devastation. The Sustainable Development Agenda 2030, and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals offer a pathway for human beings to enable decent work harmonious with environmental protections - sustainable livelihoods. Sustainable business models that are embodied in organisational values, codes of conduct, and daily practice are quintessential to ensuring both people, and the planet thrives and prosper. Industrial/organisational psychologists and vocational practitioners are key actors in ensuring sustainable livelihoods as a human right, and the basic norm in the world of work.

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