Work Schedule Unpredictability: Daily Occurrence and Effects on Working Parents' Well-Being.
Journal Article (Journal Article)
Objective
To investigate the pervasiveness and frequency of work schedule unpredictability among workers in low-wage hourly jobs and the effects of work schedule unpredictability on worker and family well-being.Background
Family science has long considered the ways in which parents' experiences in the workplace can affect families. Although unpredictability in work schedules has increased over time, especially for low-wage workers, the effects of schedule unpredictability on worker and family well-being have been understudied.Method
Ninety-two workers with children aged 2-7, recruited using a new venue-time sampling technique, were asked to complete once-a-day surveys for 30 consecutive days (N = 2,221 person-days for analysis). Descriptive analyses and regression models with family fixed effects were utilized.Results
Work schedule unpredictability was common in the context of families' lives: over the 30 days, parents experienced an unanticipated work schedule change on 13.3% of days, and 87% of parents experienced at least one unanticipated work schedule change. Within families, unpredictable work schedule changes on a given day were associated with worse outcomes that day for parents, including increased negative mood and decreased perceived sleep quality.Conclusion
Work schedule unpredictability is ubiquitous in the lives of low-wage hourly workers and is negatively related to working parents' well-being.Implications
These results provide evidence that unscheduled and canceled shifts typical of low-wage service jobs may harm parents' well-being, which could ultimately affect their children's development and well-being.Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Ananat, EO; Gassman-Pines, A
Published Date
- February 2021
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 83 / 1
Start / End Page
- 10 - 26
PubMed ID
- 34880505
Pubmed Central ID
- PMC8651235
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1741-3737
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0022-2445
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1111/jomf.12696
Language
- eng