Adapting to the Lifecourse? Evaluating Men and Women’s Working-Time Preferences

Brigid van Wanrooy ()
Additional contact information
Brigid van Wanrooy: The Australian National University

Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), 2005, vol. 8, issue 2, 145-162

Abstract: While participants in the Australian working time debate have focussed on the length and diversity of working hours, one of the central elements of the debate is whether these hours are meeting workers’ preferences. Hakim’s (2000) preference theory of work-lifestyle choices was developed to provide a framework for examining women’s work and family choices throughout their lives. She argues that while the majority of women have ‘adaptive’ preferences for both work and family, the majority of men have ‘work-centred’ preferences. This paper examines this theory using the NLC data on work hours and preferences, amongst men and women over the lifecourse. We find that work hours and preferences vary over the lifecourse for women, both with and without children. Analysis of men’s work hours shows little variation dependent on lifecourse stage, contrary to women. However, when we examine men’s individual movements in and out of the workforce we find evidence of adaptive behaviour. Additionally, in some cases men’s preferences for adaptive behaviour are not being met.

Keywords: Time Allocation and Labor Supply (hours of work, part-time employment, temporary workers, work sharing, absenteeism, quits, work-life balance); Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination; Time Allocation; Work Behavior; Employment Determination and Creation; Human Capital (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J16 J20 J22 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://ftprepec.drivehq.com/ozl/journl/downloads/AJLE082wanrooy.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ozl:journl:v:8:y:2005:i:2:p:145-162

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE) from Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sandie Rawnsley ().