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Early in 2008 NCVER engaged the Centre for Work + Life at the University of South Australia to undertake a three-year research program intended to explore how changing conditions at work, at home and in the wider community affect the participation of poorer educated and lower-paid groups in vocational education and training (VET). To date the project team has reviewed the existing literature and talked to key individuals affiliated with low-paid workers. Data from the NCVER Student Outcomes Survey (SOS), the Australian Bureau of Statistics Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey (ALLS) and the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey have also been analysed. This paper considers the changing work-life context of low-paid workers, the nature and characteristics of low-paid workers and issues related to their experience in VET. It aims to provide background to discussion about the situation of low-paid workers, their changing work-life context, and the potential that VET presents to assist improvements in their working lives. The paper then raises issues and questions for further study. This paper is accompanied by a podcast of an interview on the topic with Barbara Pocock. Show less

This report results from a study undertaken to: review experience to date in Australia and some overseas countries in programs to improve women's participation in technical and further education (TAFE); analyse current participation of women students in TAFE colleges and, through visits and consultations, identify issues which affect that participation; and make recommendations to improve women's participation in vocational education. The study used both qualitative and quantitative methods. This overview report describes the conclusions and recommendations of the research and provides a brief background to the recommendations. The contents are: Background to the report; Women, work and training; A summary of women's participation in vocational education in TAFE; The TAFE system: its implications for women; Australian initiatives to improve women's participation in vocational training. Show less

This book looks at the current situation of women in TAFE. It explores women's disadvantages in terms of quality, concentration of narrow range of jobs, small share of resources and difficulty in breaking into male-dominated fields. Re-entry into education as adults is investigated. The contents are: Second-rate citizens; Constructing skill in Australia; Australia's technical education system; Vocational education: women's share, women's place; What's wrong with TAFE colleges?; Women's courses: keyboards, clothes, kids and community care; Resources: margin versus mainstream; Breaking in: women in non-traditional study; Coming back: women returning to work and study; Some lessons from overseas; Changing the system. Show less

This book examines the collision between work and care and how it affects life in Australia. It explains how the changes in lifestyle and behaviour in recent decades have not been mirrored by changes in cultural values, workplaces and other institutions such as the law, labour market and schools, and that this situation has had high social and personal costs. The book discusses issues such as cultural constructions of 'mother' and 'carer', the effects on personal lives of working long hours, the 'mummy track' of part time work and the peripheral status of carers. It also shows the wider impact on society, for example in terms of diminishing birthrates. The conclusion is that we need to formulate new guiding principles for a new joint venture of women, men, households, the state and workplaces, incorporating elements such as secure part-time jobs, leave and workplace arrangements into a new work/care regime. Show less

Smartphones, laptops, broadband and wi-fi provide 24/7 access to data, information and each other that is unprecedented in human history. The way in which [people] interact with friends, family, clients, customers, co-workers and others is also radically altered. In this study [the authors] focus on the implications of this technological revolution for the way in which we work.

Edited published abstract. Show less

This article summarises the main results of the 2008 Australian work and life index (AWALI) survey of Australian workers. The survey reveals significant issues for Australian workers that arise from the intersection of work with the rest of their lives. Hours of work, work overload and the nature of direct supervision and workplace culture emerge as important in explaining differences in work-life interaction. When hours are the same, those with caring responsibilities (especially mothers, and particularly single mothers) have worse work-life outcomes than others. The article briefly considers the implications of findings for labour market policy and workplace initiatives.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

This report summarises findings from the second Australian Work and Life Index (AWALI) survey of work-life interaction in Australia. It builds on the findings of the 2007 survey (indexed at TD/TNC 96.21). Over 2800 workers representative of the Australian workforce were surveyed. A subset of 1400 respondents provided opinions on issues related to workplace culture, unsocial work hours and public/private employment. AWALI measures perceptions of work-life interaction focussing on: ‘general interference’ (i.e., the frequency with which work interferes with responsibilities or activities outside work), ‘time strain’ (i.e., the frequency with which work restricts time with family or friends); work-to-community interaction, measuring the frequency with which work affects workers’ ability to develop or maintain connections and friendships in their local community; satisfaction with overall work-life ‘balance’; and, frequency of feeling rushed or pressed for time. Together these five measures of work-life interaction present an overall work-life index that is scaled from 0 (best work-life interaction) to 100 (worst work-life interaction). Key findings from the survey include: (i) South Australian, Western Australian and Tasmanian respondents reported the best work-life interaction; (ii) part-time workers, on average, have a better work-life interaction than full-timers; (iii) work continues to interfere with the rest of life for a large proportion of workers: over half of all employees felt that work sometimes, often or almost always interferes with activities outside work; (iv) the most common type of work-life interference is restriction of time with family and friends due to work; (v) work to community spill over is also widespread with 44.6 per cent of men and 40.2 per cent of women feeling that work sometimes, often or almost always affects their community connections; (vi) around 55 per cent of employees frequently (often/almost always) feel rushed or pressed for time. As in 2007, women are especially rushed and pressed for time. A majority of both full-time and part-time women often or almost always feel rushed; and (vii) despite these pressures, most Australians remain satisfied with their work-life relationship: the majority (68.3 per cent) are satisfied with their overall work-life balance and there is no gender difference in satisfaction.

The 2009 survey is indexed at TD/TNC 96.988. Show less

The Australian Work and Life Index (AWALI) survey measures how work intersects with other life activities, as seen by a randomly selected representative group of 2,690 working Australians. Alongside its usual assessment of work-life interference in Australia, the 2014 AWALI survey offers new insights on four particular themes: (1) how employee requests for flexibility have changed since immediately prior to and four years subsequent to the Fair Work Act 2009 created new rights to request flexibility for some workers; (2) who works on Saturdays, Sundays and weekends, and how unsocial working times (weekends, evenings/nights) affect work-life outcomes; (3) the work-life outcomes of carers of elders or a person with a chronic illness or disability; and (4) patterns of flourishing (positive mental health) in the Australian workforce, and associations with social and employment factors. AWALI 2014 also included questions on workers who currently receive penalty rates for working non-standard hours and wellbeing/thriving, and a longitudinal sample of participants re-contacted from 2012.

This report is set out in eight sections. Section two describes the AWALI sample and its representativeness and general characteristics. Section three analyses the work-life interference of men and women in 2014, considering the component parts of the AWALI index and its summary measure in comparison with previous years' findings. Given the significance of working hours to work-life interference, section four focuses on work hours and their fit with workers' preferences. Section five analyses the personal and household characteristics of respondents and their work-life interference. Section six considers employment characteristics and work-life interference including unsocial hours. Section seven compares flexibility requests in 2014 with those reported in the 2009 and 2012 surveys. Section eight compares rates of flourishing amongst Australian workers compared with their European counterparts, as well as the relationship between flourishing and work-life interference and other demographic and work characteristics.

Excerpts from publication. Show less

Poor-quality jobs have significant costs for individual workers, their families, and the wider community. Drawing mainly on the Australian case, the authors' focus is on the structural challenges to work-life reconciliation and the multiple-level interventions necessary to create quality employment that supports workers to reconcile work and family over the life course. The authors argue that interventions are necessary in three domains: at the macrosocial and economic level, in the regulatory domain, and in the workplace domain. The nature and success of these interventions is also critical to gender equality and to responding to the changing gender and care composition of the workforce across OECD countries.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

Work time in the form of long hours or control over work scheduling (flexibility) dominates much of the debate, and organisational policies and interventions, around sustaining a healthy work-life relationship. In this study we challenge this assumption, and argue instead for the importance of the quantity of work (work overload). Using data collected in a national Australian study, we found that work overload was the strongest predictor of full-time employees' work-life conflict. Work hours, their fit with preferences, and control over work scheduling also demonstrated small to moderate associations with work-life conflict. This study indicates that time-based work-life policies, procedures and interventions are necessary, but not sufficient, for addressing work-life conflict. Effective management of work overload, with its potential to contribute to emotional strain/exhaustion and long work hours, should be considered as a keystone strategy to support a healthy work-life relationship.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less