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Over the last 25 years, the main changes in patterns of work in UK took place in structure and composition of the working relationships. The main changes in structure are flexible schedule and shift work, increased number of part time employees and telecommuting work. The main changes in composition of employees are increased number of full-time working women and minorities entering the UK workforce. The driven forces of structural changes are technology and the Internet, new social and economic demands (Mujtaba, 2006). The demographic shift in favor of minorities over whites of European origin is already seen in the composition of employees. This will result in a large number of workers in the twenty-first century for whom English will not be their primary language. Thus cultural diversity will be seen in the living colors of the workers and heard in their speech. For the first time, the UK will reflect the diversity commonplace throughout most of the other nations of the world. Technological changes have reduced the amount of physical strength needed to do most jobs. Changing technologies and the global marketplace require organizations to adapt or lose their competitive edge (Dychtwald et al. 200). Indeed, the survival of businesses and industries are dependent on how well they manage cultural diversity. Cross-cultural differences and multicultural conflicts are convoluted because of the multiple identities found within cultures. Examples of multiple identities include Catholic African Americans and Hispanic homosexuals. Also, cross-cultural differences due to geographic location may have little to do with race. With the economic restructurings taking place in the economy, though, this traditional orientation to filling manpower needs has been increasingly replaced by a more critical approach to organizational staffing. In this newer approach, human resources managers add value by questioning the existing structure and recommending alternatives to full-time staffing to meet organizational production needs (Emmerichs 2006). A number of new staffing arrangements have evolved over the past 10 to 15 years that provide organizational decision makers more latitude in designing how the organization will get its work done. Among the more prominent innovations in staffing that join the long-practiced option of temporary employees are: job sharing, employee leasing, outsourced services, and consultants or independent contractors. Together, these staffing innovations mean that the organization can plan to have its work done without hiring full-time employees to do it. One obvious advantage of such practices is a more flexible workforce with lower labor costs. This significant shift in the structure of employment and the workforce has been called the contingent workforce In some cases, people who work on a contingent basis may not be considered as employees but as independent contractors (Harrison and Weiss 2007).
Under the laws and regulations governing this situation, if a worker is considered an independent contractor, the employer is not required to provide any benefits to that person, nor is that person protected by any employment laws. Likewise, the worker is paid a fee for services (not a salary or wage from which taxes can be withheld). In this framework, there are a number of different actors involved, each with their own interests: the employer, who wants to reduce labor costs; the worker, who wants to be treated fairly and properly. Independent contractors are not covered by safety, labor, or discrimination laws. In general, an independent contractor is seen as having an independent occupation over which the person exercises control in the performance of the job.
Bibliography
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Dychtwald, K. et al. 2006, Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent. arvard Business School Press.
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Emmerichs, R. M. 2006, An Operational Process for Workforce Planning. RAND.
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Harrison, B., Weiss, M. 2007, Workforce Development Networks: Community-Based Organizations and Regional Alliances: Community-based Organizations and Regional Alliances. Sage Publications, Inc.
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Mujtaba, B. 2006. Workforce Diversity Management: Challenges, Competencies and Strategies. Llumina Press.
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