Literature Review on Alternate Work Arrangements

The common forms of alternate work arrangements are adjusted time, remote working, sharing of a job, reduced number of working hours, compressed work week among others. When the organisation enters the flexibility to meet the needs of the employee, the employee will have a more positive experience. This flexibility comes in three forms, the part-time jobs, the co-agency employment and contract workers. The major conclusion drawn from this review is that workers seem to have positive work experience when they choose to work under the alternative work arrangements. They can decide what, when and where work is done. , (2017, p. 52) in their article on alternative work arrangements referred to the alternate work arrangement as any scheduling pattern that differs from the traditional form of work that is Monday to Friday schedule.

The basic idea behind this approach for work is the flexibility aspect. The employees are given the power to make decisions on their work, thus, giving extra time to take care of other personal duties and family responsibilities. They are seen to be more productive when given a chance to execute their responsibilities. Telecommuting is the arrangement that employees spend their work week working from home. The author further stated that the alternate work arrangements reduce absenteeism, cuts down on turnover and minimises the burnout. The overall result is the improvement of moral and job satisfaction among the employees. Due to the most significant growth in jobs and organisations, there is more need for employers to understand and get to terms with employee's other side of life outside work life (Spreitzer et al.

, p. Firms are now seeking to hire workers regarding contracts due to the changing demands in the industry. They are moving out of the traditional way where employees were employed on a full-time basis with job security. The primary reason for this change is to cut on overall costs. Contract workers tend to receive short-term job security and fewer benefits. They may also not need any form of training. The desire for flexibility in the form of alternate work arrangements has made many formerly employed people choose self-employment (Rodrigues and Guest, p. The kind of employment has made it possible for people to respond to other duties other than work-related. As the own boss, he or she can delegate responsibilities to other employees.

They, therefore, become overseers of the progress while handling other organisational-related tasks and personal responsibilities. Most workers end up in self-employment with the aim of maximising on their values, talents, passions, and strengths. Another form of classification that ensures a good relationship between the worker and the organisation will be more relevant (Okhuysen et al. , p. They suggested that distinction is made between employment and contract work. The job should be such that the organisation has control over the workers and their activities. They also suggested that contracts should be administered in such a way that the worker is the one who decides on how the work is going to be accomplished. It will then reward and promote them for the work done.

The organisation will also expect continued employment. The most significant form of a direct employment relationship is the one involving full-time participation. They are the regular employees who are compared with the employees who work on alternative arrangements (Spreitzer et al. , p. Some part-time employees may have been desperately looking for jobs, and when they find low wage jobs, they won't hesitate to take on the responsibility. In some situations, they might be forced to take on many different part-time low paying jobs to meet a certain level of income. They will make time to attend to several tasks, rendering them a full-time job. This kind of scenario comes with its effects on the employee, that is, increased job stress and less life satisfaction.

Employees who get into part time job status as their last resort jobs tend to have a more negative experience compared those who do it out of passion. Others find it an only option after being laid off, and others work for an agency to find a permanent or long-term job with the client organisation. They use it as a ladder to gain full-time employment in the future. Those who end up employed on full time basis have demonstrated sufficient commitment to the work. However, co-employment workers face various challenges while working for a staffing agency. This happens when they realise that chances of getting into full employment are minimal. These contractors are categorised into two; high-skilled and low-skilled contractors. High-skilled contractors, commonly known as freelancers, sell their skill directly to the client.

They include writers, editors, and computer programmers among others. Low-skilled contactors are workers who negotiate and enter into a contract for a specific task within a particular day. A good example is a day labourer. They are forced to accommodate changes arising from changing customer needs. Agency workers are less likely to experience full flexibility since they are always assigned to a client. However, contract workers choose when to accept new assignments, thus, considered having some flexibility schedule. Apart from meeting the needs of a firm, other alternative work arrangements are made convenient to meet the requirements of employees, especially those working on a full-time basis. Kossek & Michel (2011) a study on US families and careers; they found out that more than 80% of US families are single-parent families and that more workers and trying to balance work and demand for attention to family responsibilities.

Therefore the workers will be forced to intensify their work efforts due to pressure from the firm. Full-time employees who are on alternative work arrangements may suffer from the stigma that comes from ideal workers who are always available. They are viewed as time deviants (Allen et al. , p. Women in proposed work program have been perceived to be lazy people who are unwilling to work for long hours as required by the hiring firm. Employees may feel bored and lonely unlike when in the office with their colleagues. They may find themselves less engaged in the organisation's commitments and thus reducing their knowledge sharing in the workplace. The use of technology has come in handy to offset the interactions barrier; it has allowed remote workers interact on an online platform (Allen et al.

, p. Remote employees may experience fewer opportunities for career development and promotion when compared to employees who work from organisation's premises. p. The effectiveness of remote workers can be enhanced through various ways, such as the development of cultural sensitivity and increasing communication with coworkers and managers through more comfortable technologies (Kelly et al. , p. More forms of alternative work arrangements should be put into practice to allow the employees to have a range of alternatives to choose from and act upon them. The objective is for them to balance between job demands, family demands, and personal growth issues. Flickinger, M. , Allscher, M. , & Fiedler, M. The mediating role of leader–member exchange: a study of job satisfaction and turnover intentions in temporary work.