ABSTRACT
The advent of the information society is supposed to have far-reaching effects on the organisation and scheduling of work. An animated element in the discussion is the individualisation-alternately called destandardisation or disaggregation-of work, implying a shift from permanent, stable, full-time jobs to individualised, flexible employment (Beck 2000; Carnoy and Castells 1997; Castells 2000). A ‘standard’ working career remaining with one employer for an individual’s entire working life is being replaced by the notion of ‘human capital portfolios’ (Carnoy et al. 1997) built on a variety of working arrangements such as self-employment, part-time work and temporary work. The development of the Internet especially has been significant, enabling employees to deliver work from places other than their employers’ (Autor 2001). To what extent the new technologies indeed will lead to a ‘weightless economy’ (e.g. Cairncross 1997; Pratt 2000), in which distance and time no longer constitute restrictions and where all employees work flexibly in ‘virtual offices’, is yet unclear. However, it seems obvious that the developments will have a severe impact upon the organisation of work and working time.
