Job sharing is now also gaining ground in Germany. We explain why this working time model has advantages for everyone involved. What you definitely should not share are your credentials for slotsgem casino games with live dealer.
Do you feel like you’re constantly at your limit with a full-time job, or would you like to spend more time with your family—but mini-jobs and part-time positions don’t meet your expectations? Then job sharing could be the right solution for you.
Job sharing as an alternative to full-time work
Job sharing is a working time model in which at least two people share a full-time position. In job sharing, the working hours do not necessarily have to be divided equally among the group members. For example, two employees can share the working hours in a 3:2 ratio. It is also possible for five employees to share four positions. In the latter case, each of the participants could take one day off per week.
Job sharing can be a way to downshift. On the other hand, it can also enable a career leap if, for example, it allows you to take on a leadership role together with another person that you did not have before.
Job sharing can have great advantages for employees and employers, but it is also subject to certain conditions.
Job sharing has many advantages
When the chemistry is right, job sharing works even better. The advantages of job sharing are manifold. Here are the most important points in favor of this alternative working time model:
- Job sharing gives you more flexibility than a part-time job, as you only have to coordinate your working hours with your team, not necessarily with your employer. This makes it easier to organize your private life or time off from work.
- For the employer, job sharing saves a lot of effort and costs in the long run. If one of the two employees is absent, the other remains, is still trained, and can train a new employee if necessary.
- In job sharing, you can balance individual strengths and weaknesses with a partner. Focus on what you are good at. Ideally, the strengths of the two partners complement each other.
- Job sharing promotes more efficient, concentrated work phases. Two partners in one position can thus achieve significantly more than individual employees in the same amount of time.
- Job sharing gives you more time for other important things. These can include friends and family, but also further training and voluntary, political, or charitable work.
- Job sharing is sustainable. More and more people in Germany are working far beyond their limits. This is damaging their health through stress and illness.
Types of job sharing
There are several established models of job sharing:
- Job splitting: A full-time position is divided into two (or more) part-time positions. Each person works independently, often at different times, with their own contract.
- Job pairing: The partners work closely together, sharing tasks and responsibilities. The employment contract is tandem-based and can only be terminated jointly.
- Top sharing: A management model in which two people share a senior position—decisions, responsibilities, and leadership are shared between the partners.
- Peer tandems: Two specialists share demanding key positions to combine different skills.
- Succession/legacy tandem: A tandem for succession planning in which a junior employee is trained by an experienced employee.
- Cross-functional/cross-company tandem: Employees from different companies or departments are deployed to perform interface functions in a meaningful way.
Things to consider when job sharing
Teamwork is a basic requirement for job sharing. Job sharing also poses some special challenges for everyone involved. You should keep the following things in mind:
- Two employees in a team share tasks and responsibilities. This means that each employee is also responsible for the work of the other. An employer must be able to rely on a shared position being filled just as reliably as a regular full-time position.
- Job sharing requires a high degree of organizational and communication skills. This is the only way to ensure that nothing is left undone and nothing is done twice when job sharing.