Arbeidsherverdeling door arbeidsduurverkorting: een oplossing voor de werkloosheid?
Abstract
Redistribution of work through working-time reduction: a solution for unemployment ? - In the present period of mass unemployment several remedies to redistribute the amount of available work are proposed. The most salient among these suggestions is the reduction of working time. Given the massive unemployment problem, it is argued by some that reducing working time in order to supply more jobs should be a labor market policy. Thinking in terms of the present-day global interrelatedness, the author deals with the topic of working-time reduction in the Belgian national economy. First, focus is on the different organizational types and modes under which working-time reduction can be (or has actually been) introduced. The extension of compulsory education, early retirement, career-interruption, job-sharing and the lowering of the average working time are discussed. In addition collective versus individual, voluntary versus forced and permanent versus temporary working-time reduction, as well as working-time reduction with or without the maintenance of in¬ come, are compared. Further three elaborated models/programs for working-time reduction will be described. The debate between the advocates and adversaries of working-time reduction is presented by distinguishing populational from mere economic arguments, the latter concerning problems, limitations and preconditions (regarding income, education and other economic parameters) for achieving compromise among the relevant collective actors involved (unions, employers’ associations,...). Finally, this article not only returns to its initial question (whether working-time reduction is a solution for unemployment) but it also wants to inquire into the nature and effectiveness of working-time reduction as a possible labor market policy.
How to Cite:
De Vos, P., (1997) “Arbeidsherverdeling door arbeidsduurverkorting: een oplossing voor de werkloosheid?”, Tijdschrift voor Sociale Wetenschappen 42(2), 146–170. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/tvsw.95267
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