Part-Time Versus Full-Time (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Business)

Revision Note

Danielle Maguire

Written by: Danielle Maguire

Reviewed by: Steve Vorster

Part-time or Full-time Contracts

  • Businesses can employ workers on a variety of employment contacts including part-time and full-time

    • Part-time employment is often considered to be between 1 and 30 hours a week

    • Full-time employees will usually work 35+ hours a week

  • Flexible working is the development of a culture where workers are able to work in a range of employment patterns (full-time, part-time, zero hours contracts, work from home etc)

Evaluating full-time contracts

  • Hiring full-time workers is expensive but it generates significant benefits

The Impact of Full-time Contracts on a Business

Advantages

Disadvantages

  • Full-time contracts encourage loyalty to the business from employees

  • Having a stable and consistent workforce reduces the need for frequent hiring

  • Full-time employees are often more motivated, leading to higher levels of productivity

  • Providing benefits and a steady salary to full-time employees is more expensive than hiring part-time or contract workers

  • Full-time employees may be less flexible with working hours which can be a challenge in industries with fluctuating workloads

  • If business demands fluctuate, having a full-time workforce may lead to overstaffing during slow periods

Evaluating part-time contracts

The Impact of Part-time Contracts on a Business

Advantages

Disadvantages

  • Part-time contracts can help businesses attract and retain staff who value work-life balance

  • Productivity may improve as staff feel valued, having been given the option of working part-time

  • Can enhance workforce flexibility as it may be easier to schedule employees to work at busy times

  • Low business costs if the worker is only needed for part-time hours

  • Part-time contracts can create challenges in terms of communication and collaboration

  • Monitoring and managing part-time workers can be challenging

    • E.g. an employee may be absent from a weekly meeting regularly as it is their day off

  • It may be harder for part-time employees to be promoted as they have less opportunity to gain the skills needed

  • Part-time employees may be less committed to the business and may be more likely to leave to get another job

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Danielle Maguire

Author: Danielle Maguire

Expertise: Business Content Creator

Danielle is an experienced Business and Economics teacher who has taught GCSE, A-Level, BTEC and IB for 15 years. Danielle's career has taken her from across various parts of the UK including Liverpool and Yorkshire, along with teaching at a renowned international school in Dubai for 3 years. Danielle loves to engage students with real life examples and creative resources which allow students to put topics in a context they understand.

Steve Vorster

Author: Steve Vorster

Expertise: Economics & Business Subject Lead

Steve has taught A Level, GCSE, IGCSE Business and Economics - as well as IBDP Economics and Business Management. He is an IBDP Examiner and IGCSE textbook author. His students regularly achieve 90-100% in their final exams. Steve has been the Assistant Head of Sixth Form for a school in Devon, and Head of Economics at the world's largest International school in Singapore. He loves to create resources which speed up student learning and are easily accessible by all.