Part-time work and gender: Worker versus job explanations

Abstract

This article draws on Norwegian Labour Force Survey data to investigate the worker and job characteristics of different types of part-time employment and their patterns of gendering. The most prevalent and female-dominated type is voluntary long part-time work, reflecting employer adjustment to women's working-time preferences. Voluntary short part-time work is significantly less gendered, typically representing marginal labour force affiliation, combined with education or gradual retirement, which employers use for flexibility in low-skilled service and care industries. Involuntary part-time employment is strongly associated with secondary labour market characteristics (temporary contracts, "non-Western" citizenship) and affects women to a greater extent than men. © 2012 The authors Journal compilation © 2012 International Labour Organization.