Job sharing, otherwise known as job-sharing, is a variant of part-time work, which consists in the fact that two people, working in one position, divide among themselves duties, pay and benefits in proportion to the working time of each of them. The working time of employees employed in the same position depends on the arrangements with the employer, while the most common is the 50:50 variant (part-time).  Employees can work on the same days but at different times, or come to work in shifts on days that are fixed between them.

This system works well for people who want or need to reconcile work with other non-professional activities. It can also be a good solution for companies that have found themselves in a difficult financial situation and do not want to limit employment. 

Depending on the adopted job-sharing model, employees employed in one position may have a strictly defined division of duties and cooperate with each other to a limited extent or be responsible for the effects of their own and partner’s work. Experts of the Institute of Labor and Social Affairs in the guide „Flexible forms of work. A guide for employees” list 3 basic job-sharing models:

• shared responsibility – in this model, employees do not share responsibilities, they work interchangeably. It works well in positions where there is continuity of work. It requires good communication and cooperation between employees.
• devided responsibility – in this model, each employee is responsible for other projects or clients, and cooperation and the need for communication between employees is limited. This solution works well for people who do not know each other well.
• unrelated responsibility – this model applies to employees of the same department, who, however, carry out separate tasks. In it, we are dealing with a kind of employee tandem. It works well for employees with complementary experience and skills.

Job sharing, like other types of part-time work, is a good solution for many different groups, e.g.:

• learning staff who combine professional work with learning at school or university,
• employees on parental leave,
• employees returning to work after a longer break, e.g. caused by illness,
• older workers who want to gradually reduce their professional activity,
• employees caring for dependent persons,
• people with disabilities who are unable to work full-time.

Benefits for the employer:

• The ability to use the experience and competences of two employees at one workplace.
• Retention of older workers in the company.
• Exchange of knowledge and experience between employees employed in the same position.
• Access to additional target groups not interested in full-time work (e.g. some disabled workers, students and pupils, people on parental leave).
• Maintaining the level of employment in the situation of financial problems of the company.
• Lower level of staff fluctuations.
• Employee satisfaction and commitment.

Benefits for the employee:

• More time for family and private life.
• Maintaining continuity of employment, and over time easier transition to full-time employment.
• An additional source of income at a time when the employee does not have the opportunity or desire to take up a full-time job.
• The opportunity to learn from your partner.
• The ability to break away from household chores.
• The possibility of gradual implementation of professional duties after a break related to the appearance of a child in the family or after a longer sick leave.
• The opportunity to gain professional experience already at the stage of learning.
• Possibility of taking up work by a disabled person.
• The possibility of phasing out of working life for older workers.

Source:  https://rodzinaipraca.gov.pl/narzedzia-godzenia-rol/dzielenie-stanowiska-pracy-job-sharing/

Projekt otrzymał dofinansowanie z Norwegii poprzez Fundusze Norweskie 2014-2021, w ramach programu „Dialog społeczny – godna praca”.