NEW Choice
Choice of Work Hours
Early in the nineteenth century, most people worked twelve hours a day, six days a week with the compulsory religious observance on the Sunday. The work week shrank gradually during the nineteenth century and more quickly during the twentieth. The traditional six-day week was shortened to five and a half days during the 1920s and to the five-day, forty-hour week during the 1930s. But the work week has stagnated at 40 hours for more than sixty years. The long historical trend toward shorter work hours stopped completely during the 1950s and 1960s, during a period of rapid economic growth, rising wages, and widespread affluence. And in recent times work hours are increasing.
The 40 hour week may have made some sense in 1930, but it no longer makes sense today. Now that women work as well as men, people need more flexibility to balance work and family responsibility. Yet most people today have no choice of work hours. The NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker strives t change this perception. In most fields, if you want job security, good pay, benefits, and a chance of promotion, you must take a 40-hour job. Despite these obstacles, many people want to work part time or in other arrangements.
The NEWORK/Portfolio worker often holds to the position of being able to have some control over the hours worked, some choice in the arragement of when and where a task may be carried out.
This matter of choice of workhour has advantages to both the employer and the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker. It is a sustainable concept that does not compromise the efforts of the emploer in managing their business or in the efforts of the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker in providing a professional outcome and still provide economic benefits to the country..
Choice of Environment
For the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker each day is different than the last. Each project, while similar to previous projects, is different in its objectives, client base, budget and client expectations. While this diversity makes for a more interesting and satisfying job setting, it requires a higher degree of focus and team spirit than may be common in other settings.
The NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker acknowledges the need for balance between work and personal time. They strive to control controlling as many dimensions of the work environment and personal areas as possible to insure a quality work product and, and to that extent a high level of professional and personal satisfaction.
The NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker in setting the work environment will:
- as a general setting, we choose an environment which promotes productivity, efficiency and effectiveness; an environment in which all involved strive for and care about excellence in their work; one that creates, values, cultivates and shares creativity and innovation with others.
- choose an environment of self-discipline, where (a) each team member is responsible for his or her own punctuality, accuracy, reliability and attitude, and (b) each is willing to seek the help of others in the pursuit of those ends.
- choose an environment that makes maximum use of systems to insure consistency and continuity and in which all involved will strive to develop new and better systems for the good of the whole using appropriate technologies and support processes
- co-operate with everyone, be willing to help and not hold back or pass the buck.
- respect the talents and contributions of every other person, support and share talents and contributions with others.
- show personal respect and acceptance of other members of the organisation or chooses not to be a part of the organsation.
This environment may well be one that is alive and well within the emloyers organisation but it is also one that the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker brings from their base of work. This may be a home office or a designated office in the city. It may be one of balancing the life/work balance of the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker's life, family, friends and aquaintances.
Choice of location
This raises issues of access. For most people, their preparation for their working day starts with the travel to a place of work. For many people this means joining the "rush hour", competing for a position on the roadway, competing for a place on public transport (bus or train).
When workers sit in seemingly endless traffic congestion we all lose:
- Businesses lose time and productivity
- People have less free time to enjoy, lessening their quality of life
- Traffic congestion increases pollution
- People are not necessarily free to choose where they work and what type of job they do
For the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker other issues also come into focus. These include matters relating to the choice of
- Lifestyle
- Environment
- Commitments to family
- Commitments to friends
- Commitments to other organisations
- Type of job/task/outcome from the contract
and then often as secondary issues those relating to
- money (revenue or income),
- money (costs of living such as housing, food, etc)
For the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker the che ability to negotiate with the prospective employer
- hours of work
- environment, and
- location
provides options of benefit to both employer and the NEWORKer/Portfolio Worker.
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