Job sharing benefits not realised

NZ Business, Mar 2007

New Zealand employers are not realising the benefits of job sharing, a new survey from Hudson reveals.

The survey of 1911 employers reveals that 80 percent of companies offering job sharing see a direct and positive impact on the attraction and retention of staff.

(Job sharing is defined as two or more people sharing one full-time role.)

While the survey reveals that staff development and retention is the highest HR priority in 2007 for almost half of the companies surveyed, only one-third have adopted job sharing programmes to help address retention issues.

Hudson GM Marc Burrage says these results show job sharing to be an effective solution to the critical issue of staff retention but that many employers were not offering any job sharing programmes.

"Some employers view job sharing as an employee benefit that does not bring tangible benefits to the employer - but this survey strongly cuts across that myth."

Barrage attributed the low number of people using job sharing to largely incorrect perceptions. For example, almost three-quarters of employers who said they would not consider job sharing said this was because they thought the role was not suitable. However, Burrage said there was no reason why a number of roles across organisations such as management positions cannot be part of a job sharing programme. "There are several myths surrounding job sharing as an employment solution, particularly that it is limited to mothers or administrative staff. As long as positions are set up correctly, job sharing is equally applicable for administrative, management and operational roles."

More information is available at www.hudson.com