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November 17, 1997
The Changing Nature of Part-time Work
Some interesting statistics from the above-titled report, released on November 17, 1997, by the Canadian Council on Social Development, are found below:
About 50 per cent of part-time jobs are held by women aged 25 and older. -
About 33 per cent are held by young people under the age of 25.
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The remaining 17 per cent of part-time jobs are held by men aged 25 and older. >
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About 18 per cent of all jobs in Canada are part-time. The rate of part-time work has risen steadily since the 1950s, when less than five per cent of jobs were part-time.
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Compared to full-time workers, part-time workers are over-represented in clerical, sales, and service occupations – accounting for six of every 10 part-time workers – and they are under-represented in managerial and professional occupations and in blue collar jobs.
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Since the mid-1980s, job growth has been strongest in professional occupations. Reflecting this trend, about one-third of adult women working part-time today are employed in professional categories, compared to about one-quarter in the mid-1980s.
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On average, part-time workers have lower educational qualifications than full-time workers, even within the same occupational categories, including professionals. Educational qualifications are one measure of the level of skill required for a job.
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In sales and service occupations, where part-time work is prevalent, part-time workers hold 46 per cent of the lowest-skilled jobs and only 18 per cent of the highest-skilled jobs.
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When workers were asked whether their jobs had been greatly or somewhat affected by new technologies over the past five years, 56 per cent of full-time workers said yes, compared to only 36 per cent of part-time workers.
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When workers were asked whether their skills had increased due to the introduction of new technologies, 73 per cent of full-time workers said yes, compared to 61 per cent of part-time workers.
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Sixty-four per cent of full-time workers said their interest in their job had increased due to the new technologies, compared to 52 per cent of part-time workers.
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In 1995, nearly half (43 per cent) of part-time workers earned less than $7.50 per hour, compared with less than one-tenth of full-time workers.
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Of all full-time employees in 1995, 60 to 70 per cent had access to occupational pension plans, medical and dental plans, and paid sick leave. By contrast, less than 20 per cent of part-time workers received such benefits.
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Part-time workers have a higher rate of casual employment than full-time workers in all occupations. Among professionals in education, for example, 54 per cent of part-time workers said their job was not permanent, compared to only 12 per cent of full-time workers in that field.
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One-third of part-time workers have irregular hours and therefore receive pay cheques of varying amounts, compared to only one-tenth of full-time workers.
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Between 1975 and 1994, the proportion of workers who wanted a full-time job but were unable to find one rose from 11 to 35 per cent, an increase of about 675,000 workers. By 1994, about 800,000 Canadians were involuntarily employed part-time because they couldn't find full-time work.
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In 1994, nearly half (42 per cent) of mothers working part-time who had school-aged children said they would prefer full-time work, compared to less than one-third (28 per cent) in 1984.
The Changing Nature of Part-Time Work - Related Material
Canadian Council on Social Development,
309 Cooper Street, 5th Floor,
Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 0G5
Tel: (613) 236-8977, Fax: (613) 236-2750, Web: www.ccsd.ca, Email: council@ccsd.ca
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