1. Admin Services Outcome 2 The impact of changing working practices on the modern working environment

2. Traditional Working Practices Traditional Working Practices meant workers were employed either: –Permanent full-time OR –Permanent part-time –Hours worked were normally 9 am – 5 pm –In the office premises

3. Changes In Working Practices Today there are a wide range of employment contracts and working practices: Terms of Contract Working Hours Mode of Work Permanent, temporary, fixed- term, casual Full-time, part-time, flexi- time, job-share Office-based, home-based, tele- working, hot-desking

4. Why have these changes come about? New Technology - Competition - Social Trends – The Internet has made communication and the exchange of information easy, fast and relatively cheap The highly competitive business environment has forced organisations to streamline their activities and adopt working practices which are cost-effective The changing needs and demands of the workforce and legislation, have influenced organisations to adopt more flexible working practices. The Flexible Working Regulations Act of 2002.

5. The Effects of these Changes Organisations might choose to outsource whole areas of operations, eg: –Marketing, recruitment or payroll services Employers might offer career breaks to long-serving, experienced employees to pursue other interests, then return to work to their original position Case-loading has been adopted in some organisations replacing the traditional 9 to 5, 5-days-a-week with more flexible hours (completing the workload is considered more important than working a set number of hours a day

6. Impact on the Organisation Short-term contracts can be used to employ staff only when they are needed (seasonal work) Organisations can buy in specialist skills rather than the need for training existing staff Organisations can retain highly experienced workers whose personal circumstances have changed (family commitments) – no need to recruit and train new staff Savings are made in terms of size of buildings Better morale, motivation and therefore productivity Outsourcing of services to specialist firms can be cost effective

7. Impact on Employees Greater choice and flexibility of working practices to suit changing needs and lifestyle Perhaps less job security if contracts are increasingly of a temporary or fixed-term nature – implications for: –Pensions –Ability to get a mortgage