Casual part time work on the rise in capitalist Britain

Part-time workers now account for nearly three in 10 of the British workforce, the latest statistics have shown.
The number of people working part-time hours rose by 143,000 in the three months to August to reach 7.96m, the highest figure since comparable records began in 1992, the figures by the Office for National Statistics have revealed. Part-time working accounted for 27.3pc of total employment, with the number of people in working rising by 178,000 on the quarter to 29.16m.

A record 1.14m employees and self-employed people were working part-time because they could not find a full job, up 65,000 on the quarter, the ONS said.

In 2011 in capitalist Britain this is the state we find ourselves. Its no coincidence that workers in part time jobs has shot up like this in recent years. To a employer they are cheaper to employ and require less incentives to work in their view. They are often people who have been unemployed and are desperate for any job just to pay their bills. Many workers i know now are having to take 2 or 3 part time jobs in a week just to get anywhere near the level they need to pay their monthly and weekly bills.

We hear a lot about the unemployment figures but i thought i'd put it back out there that although there is growing mass unemployment in Britain those who are still in work face a very tough time of it. With peoples hours being cut, pay frozen or even cut and even then part time workers are seen as some of the first and easiest to get rid of in the eyes of a employer when costs need to be saved as they put it.

Part-time jobs are hit hardest as companies use the flexibility of these contracts to reduce costs. With the economy expected to remain weak for some time and the spending cuts still being implemented, unemployment is expected to continue increasing.

It is a tough time to be a worker but i sense that being a part time employee myself we will be looked at at either being employed to save cost as we dont work as long as a full timer or let go first when cuts are looked for as we may not have been at our work for as long so havent built up so much of a pay off offer perhaps.

Many women are in part time work having many had children find it easier to ease themselves back into work that way of going part time first of all and we of course know women out number men in the public sector which of course are under the greatest threat by cuts and pension reforms.

It is key we dont forget any part of the working class employed or not, part time or full time, public or private sector. We are all workers and are all facing a unprecedented attack on our living standards and take home pay. It is estimated that by 2015 our average take home pay will be back to what it was in 2001. So if capitalisms only answer is to take us backwards it is time we all stood up and brought a end to this backward exploititive system of greed over peoples needs.