Is part time the new full time?
In the aftermath of the pandemic, businesses have continued to rebuild, meaning job vacancies are at a record high, whilst the unemployment rate drops rapidly. This has created a worker shortage, so why aren’t people increasing their part time hours, to full time?
One thing the pandemic highlighted was the lack of work-life balance for many people in the UK. With the increase of people working from home or working flexible hours, a great work-life balance that incorporates flexibility in their role has become a necessity for many people when considering a job.
The latest official figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) show that more than 8 million people (a quarter of the UK workforce) are now employed part time.
So, is there a specific reason why?
Many people have found that working full time, actually reduces their income more than if they only worked part time. One of the reasons behind this is that many people can only earn a certain amount if they are on universal credit payments. This means that an increase in hours and pay, would subsequently mean that their UC payments would drop, potentially causing them to be worse off when working additional hours.
With rising costs of childcare, parents are also considering reducing hours to enable them to keep up with costs. Many will often be better off for reducing their hours at work, and therefore reducing their childcare fees. Parents without flexibility around location or hours are also reducing their hours to ensure they are around for after school clubs and to spend additional time with their children.
Many of those with larger salaried jobs are also considering part time or job sharing to avoid the higher tax rate. Some will be lucky enough to still receive the same income due to avoiding the higher tax bracket, and having the option to reduce their pension contributions.
All of this has led to people putting pressure on the government to make childcare more affordable so parents can go back to full time work. They are also pushing for the government to reconsider conditions so full time hours are more worthwhile, such as high tax rates etc.