Switching to P/T - Advise

[Anonymous]

I am thinking of going part-time once DC #3 is born. I haven't discussed this with my employer yet because I want to get all my facts together first and want to ask for what's fair. Is it better to work on an hourly or salary rate when you're P/T? Do you assume that if you work 1/2 the hours, you should get 1/2 the pay? Any words of wisdom are appreciated from anyone who has been through this.

TIA!

[Anonymous]

I negotiated a 20% cut in hours (to 32 hours, or four days a week), for a 20% pay cut. I don't think I did 20% less work, though my boss did cover for me on Fridays when I was doing this, but there has to be some disincentive or else everyone else in my department would have said, hey, I want to work four days for less.

It worked out great for a few years, until I was getting paid less to do more work. I was up for a promotion that I don't think I would have gotten had I kept the schedule, but by then we were really comfortable with our daycare situation, had a good routine down, had gotten both kids past the infant stage, etc. and I was ready to ramp back up to five days. It was really nice to have the extra money and now I don't stress about getting everything done in four days or having to finagle how to handle a conference call without child care etc. (luckily we have family close enough to rely on but it was still stressful to have to figure it out).

My advice - write a one page proposal and focus on what your company would get out of it, and stress flexibility. The only way my situation worked was to have full child care so we could switch days and not scramble at the last minute if need be. And I wanted to make it work so I did check in via blackberry on my day off. Finally, be realistic. My job description didn't change since I was only going down to four days with willlingness to check in, etc. on my day off. If you are trying to reduce farther than that - to three or fewer days, you have to think realistically about what they will mean for your responsiblities, and you need to make suggestions on how you think your company could handle it.

[Anonymous]

PP, couldn't agree more. This is exactly what I did. At first went down to 32 hours (4 days); then went down to 3 days. Both times, I came to management with a written plan. While I commit to 3 days in the office, I make myself available outside those hours for urgent issues, keep an eye on email and voicemail when out, and don't ask for more pay when I do occasionally work extra time - this is consistent with being a professional. When I was full time, I didn't ask for extra pay if I stayed late or worked on a weekend. I also make a point to be completely focused on work and available when I'm there. No long lunches, personal calls, etc. (I'm typing this as I wolf down a sandwich at my desk).

I def work more than 3 days a week and only get paid for 3 days a week, but the flexibility and time with my children makes it worth it. Note, at my company, when you drop below 30 hours, you lose benefits. If you can get benefits through your spouse's company, that is an additional savings for your company. You can also propose it on a provisional basis - i.e., see how it goes and request a formal evaluation of the arrangement after 30 or 60 days. If you do this, be sure to maintain your child care in case your employer decides it isn't working and you have to go back to full time.

[Anonymous]

thanks, I don't know if my employer will go for it or not but we'll see!

Has anyone tried to go P/T and was rejected by employer, did that hurt your career at that company?