The Part-time Paradox: Time Norms, Professional Life, Family and Gender

ISBN-13: 9780415921244 / Angielski / Miękka / 1998 / 188 str.

Cynthia Fuchs Epstein

Opis

Choosing to work part-time may seem like an attractive option for many workers, and it is a fact of the modern workplace that the availability of part-time work is increasing. However, the authors of this study find that there are cultural and social meanings attached to part-time work which suggest that it is in fact not such an easy option. Using case studies of legal professionals, this book highlights not only the negative sides, but also the coping strategies utilized to overcome the part-time paradox.

Recenzje

"The Part-time Paradox provides a brilliant portrayal of the discontents of the post-industrial workplace. With insight and passion, it demonstrates that achieving gender equity and family welfare requires nothing less than a fundamental restructuring of the 'time norms' that now equate work success with all consuming commitment." -- Kathleen Gerson, author of Hard Choices: How Women Decide about Work, Career, and Motherhood
"This superb study works on many levels--as first-class scholarship, as probing policy analysis, and as an extraordinary source of insight into the professional lives of men and women. A must read for all who study, love or live with the struggles of work and family." -- John Hagan, co-author of Gender and Practice
"Lawyers now rival medical interns and residents in workaholism (though at least they kill only themselves). This book--the first systematic study of part-time legal careers--shows that lawyers can control their hours and effectively serve employers and clients--as well as themselves and their families." -- Richard Abel, author of American Lawyers

Spis treści

Part I: The Social Meaning of Professional Time 1. Introduction 2. The Social Context of Time Deviance 3. Time and the Practices and Rituals of the Legal Profession Part II: Cultural Perspectives on Part-time Work and Its Consequences 4. Part-Time Work as Deviance: Stigmatization and its Consequences 5. Perspectives on Accommodating Part-Time Work 6. Calculating the Economics of Part-Time Work Part III: Career Issues and Problems in Part-Time Legal Work 7. Mobility 8. Job Security and Insecurity: The Vulnerability of Part-Time Positions 9. Part-Time Status and Rank Discrepancies: Statue Incongruity 10. Commitment and Professional Status 11. Collegiality 12. Justice and Fairness Part IV: The Family and Part-Time Work 13. Parents, Children, Child Care, and the Division of Labor in the Family Part V: Technology 14. Technology and Part-Time Lawyering Part VI 15. Conclusion Part VII: Appendices A. Research Methodology B. Part-Time Work Policies and Issues They Cover C. Tables

O autorze

Cynthia Fuchs Epstein is Distinguished Professor of Sociology at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She is Visiting Professor at the Stanford Law School for 1997-98. Carroll Seron is Acting Dean of the School of Public Affairs at Baruch College, CUNY. Bonnie Oglensky and Robert Sauté are at CUNY Graduate Center.