Search results for "shirking"

Employee shirking and overworking: modelling the unintended consequences of work organisation

2020

Underworking (i.e. shirking) and overworking of employees can have detrimental effects for the individual and the organisation. We develop a computational model to investigate how work structure, specifically the way in which managers distribute work tasks amongst employees, impacts work intensity and working time. The model draws on theories from economics, psychology and management, and on empirical observations. The simulations show that when managers correctly estimate task difficulty, but undervalue the employee’s competence, opportunities for shirking are provided due to longer deadlines. Similarly, if managers overvalue the employee’s competence, they set tighter deadlines leading to…