Notes on the evolving definition of "work"

Many thanks to Joan Basset of Cohort D and Sharon Rose, our program administrator, for submitting these two ideas regarding our evolving definition of "work".  From another class Joan is taking, she shares the following quote from Work in America (Pitt-Catsouphes, M., Kossek, E. & Sweet, S (Eds), pp. 2-3.):

"We can come closer to a multi-dimensional definition of work if we define it as 'an activity that produced something of value for other people.'"

Along those same lines, this October 1 article from Employee Benefit News contains references to research indicating that when employers provide workplace policies that give employees more flexibility in their schedules, employee retention, employee satisfaction, and the company’s bottom line are all improved. The article makes the case or extending flexible benefits to nonexempt (hourly) employees because, while flexible benefits are now available to a full 80% of salaried employees in the U.S., they are almost never conferred to full-time nonexempt (hourly) employees.

Hourly employees require and value flexible work schedules as much as salaried employees:  Nixing "9 to 5"