Definition: An employment option that lets two people share the
responsibilities of one full-time position
One of the reasons you probably started a business was to enjoy
the benefits of balancing your family and business lives. And
chances are, once you've achieved that, you'll want your employees
to enjoy the same benefit. On the plus side, the less formal
environment of a small company is the ideal setting for a flexible
employee policy. On the other hand, small businesses are more
likely than large companies to depend on a core of "indispensable"
employees. So how do you balance your company's needs with those of
your employees? One flexible schedule option that helps you do both
is job-sharing.
Job-sharing is basically a form of part-time work that provides
you with the equivalent of one full-time employee while giving the
job-sharing employees the ability to keep their careers on track
while allowing more time for family responsibilities or other
activities.
The key to making the strategy work is a willingness to
understand the needs of your staff. And the employees participating
need to be organized. Work patterns need to be plotted, and
communication--between the employees sharing the job and other
staff members--needs to be better than average.
In establishing your company's personnel policies, whether
they're set out in a formal employee manual or created on a
case-by-case basis, it's important not to be arbitrary in
accommodating your employees. Doing so will lead to poor morale
over perceived unfairness; worse, it could open your company to
lawsuits.