The ILO's Global Wage Report 2012/13 says many companies have adopted new working practices in response to the global economic crisis as a way of staying afloat. According to the report, employees have seen changes in their hourly wage rates, as well as in the number of hours they work. “In many countries, the global economic crisis has led to shorter hours of work due to reductions in the amount of overtime or an increase in involuntary part-time work, as well as increases in the proportion of part-time relative to full-time employees. This has negatively affected wages,” says Patrick Belser, co-author of the report. Companies in several countries have reduced employees' working time as part of work sharing programmes. Often, three or four-day weeks have replaced the traditional five-day week, daily hours have been reduced or plants have been shut down for periods of several weeks or even months.
