What has not been at issue in the historical context is that work time, whatever its duration, should generally occur in blocks of contiguous hours. Beginning in the late-1970s and continuing into the decade of the 1990s, however, flexible work time concepts have changed and are continuing to change the character of this issue (Gilmour, 1992, pp. 513-517). Further, in many instances, business management has taken the lead in the development, gaining employee acceptance, and introduction of such concepts. To be sure, the traditional framework of the issue--total hours worked--remains viable. Labor unions fought hard for the 40-hour work week as a basic compensation standard to protect labor from managerial exploitation, and the 40-hour work week as a basis for overtime compensation and other factors is now a part of federal labor law (Gilmour, 1992, pp. 513-517). Flexible working hours, however, can be structured within the concept of the 40-hour work week with respect to compensation and other factors.
This current research is concerned with the effect of flexible working hours, particularly flextime, on employee productivity, job satisfaction, and absenteeism. These effects are considered in the discussions that follow.
Approximately 53 percent of American famili