A Brief History of Long Work Time and the Contemporary Sources of Overwork
Journal of Business Ethics 84:217 - 227 (2009)
| Abstract | What are some of the key historical trends in hours of work per worker in US? What economic, social-psychological, organizational and institutional forces determine the length of individuals' working hours? How much of the trend toward longer working hours among so many workers may be attributable to workers' preferences, workplace incentives or employers' constraints? When can work become overwork or workaholism – an unforced addiction to incessant work activity which risk harm to workers, families or even economies? The first part of this article traces the history of the length of working hours and its recent polarization. The second part develops a multi-disciplinary model to identify motivations behind working longer hours. Individuals' desired work hours will stem from the weighted contribution of five sources: (1) current real wage rates; (2) forward-looking, wage trajectories; (3) relative status associated with hours of labor; (4) intrinsic rewards, process benefits or amenities acquired through work; (5) hours demanded by the employer and other structural constraints, to which workers may adapt. Employers and their established conditions of work have influenced the course of long run trends labor supply and in work time structures. The final section suggests policies that might address the persistence of long hours | |||||||||
| Keywords | No keywords specified (fix it) | |||||||||
| Categories | ||||||||||
| Options |
|
|||||||||
Download options| PhilPapers Archive |
Upload a copy of this paper Check publisher's policy on self-archival Papers currently archived: 5,701 |
| External links |
 |
| Through your library | Configure |
Similar books and articlesJames A. Anderson & Charles Weijer (2002). The Research Subject as Wage Earner. Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics 23 (4-5).
G. Wester & J. Wolff (2010). The Social Gradient in Health: How Fair Retirement Could Make a Difference. Public Health Ethics 3 (3):272-281.
Mark R. Mercurio (2008). A Day Too Long: Rethinking Physician Work Hours. Hastings Center Report 38 (4):pp. 26-27.
Karen Ritchie (1988). Professionalism, Altruism, and Overwork. Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 13 (4):447-455.
Louis W. Fry & Melanie P. Cohen (2009). Spiritual Leadership as a Paradigm for Organizational Transformation and Recovery From Extended Work Hours Cultures. Journal of Business Ethics 84:265 - 278.
A. E. Geurts Sabine, G. J. Beckers Debby, W. Taris Toon, A. J. Kompier Michiel & G. W. Smulders Peter (forthcoming). Worktime Demands and Work-Family Interference: Does Worktime Control Buffer the Adverse Effects of High Demands? Journal of Business Ethics.
Sabine A. E. Geurts, Debby G. J. Beckers, Toon W. Taris, Michiel A. J. Kompier & Peter G. W. Smulders (2009). Worktime Demands and Work-Family Interference: Does Worktime Control Buffer the Adverse Effects of High Demands? Journal of Business Ethics 84:229 - 241.
Atsuko Kanai (2009). "Karoshi (Work to Death)" in Japan. Journal of Business Ethics 84:209 - 216.
Allard E. Dembe (2009). Ethical Issues Relating to the Health Effects of Long Working Hours. Journal of Business Ethics 84:195 - 208.
Ronald J. Burke (2009). Working to Live or Living to Work: Should Individuals and Organizations Care? Journal of Business Ethics 84:167 - 172.
Analytics
Monthly downloads |
Added to index2009-01-28Total downloads12 ( #93,408 of 549,124 )Recent downloads (6 months)1 ( #63,361 of 549,124 )How can I increase my downloads? |
My notes
Discussion
