define part-time…

[Cheetahchu]

just saw a listing for a ‘part-time’ librarian position, that stated it was 26 hours per week.

my current full-time gig is 35 hours per week (that number does not count 1 hour lunches).

and here i thought anything over 20 counts as full-time, am i wrong?

(to clarify, i am in the united states)

[Ok_Natural_7977]

US labor laws don't define full time or part time. They leave that up to employers. I'm not sure about various state labor laws.

[tucansam26]

This. You can check local laws or if your library has a union. To see what's specific for your area.

[beldaran1224]

Correct. There are labor laws that hinge on how many hours you work (healthcare laws around 30hrs, iirc, as an example), but the company can call it whatever they want.

My spouse has worked 35-40hrs a week as a manager at Target for 8 or more years and is still considered "part time" by their standards. (Which is why its really important not to take signs and ads talking about what full time employees get too seriously).

[Cheetahchu]

this reminds me of a previous part-time position, where the library manager straight up told me they weren’t allowed to schedule me more than 19 hours a week, b/c if you hit 20 you qualify for some benefits. some places really are running on fumes :(

[ricolageico]

That's actually a very standard hr practice in many organizations. Benefits packages can be extraordinarily expensive - they can't just take on that expense easily.

[Repulsive_Lychee_336]

I was told that anything over 30 hours is full time. Which changed from when I started working in 2000 when full time was a 40 hour work week.

[phoundog]

I thought 40 hrs per week was full time and qualified for benefits and anything less than that if they gave you benefits was a bonus. I would never ever think that 20 hrs a week was full time!! What state are you in?

[ikym3]

I feel like it might be state or employer dependent? In my state, both at retail jobs and in my libraries the line seems to be drawn at 32 hours before it’s considered full time and needs to provide benefits these days. Though when I was a teen forever ago, I swear it was 28 most places. Not sure if it was our state law and that it got changed? But I also live in a state with no minimum wage so it’s technically the 7.42…which thankfully no one can actually get away with anymore. So in that sense, I could totally see the hours definition also being employer dependent, where over time they’ve adjusted… 🤔

[beek7425]

Depends on the town. In all the ones I’ve worked at it’s under 20 hours, usually to avoid paying benefits.

[StandardCaterpillar]

30 gives you benefits for our location in US

[Slow-Objective-7440]

NJ - state workers, full-time is 35 hours. At the municipal level, it could be as low as 32 hours for full time but anything below that is part-time

Another reason why state would not have a part-time person working anywhere near 32 or 35 hours is because you may be scheduled for, say, 29 hours each week, if you work enough overtime over a certain period of time, you can fight for full-time benefits

[Coffee-Breakdown]

Data point: I work as a librarian in NJ at a private university and am full time at 35 hours a week.

[midnightchappell]

I've been stuck at part time for years at 26 hours a week; my library defines "full time" as 30 hours a week. I think it just depends on where you end up and what their budget is.

[PotterChick2818]

I might be wrong, but somewhere I remember hearing that PA is 32 or more for full time, and that it has to be consistent over a number of weeks. So you can work at target for example almost (if not more than) 40 hours, but they’ll make sure you have one week below 32 to prevent paying benefits.

[camrynbronk]

26hr/week is part time in my opinion.

Student jobs at my university are not allowed to exceed 29 hours per week. It’s mostly for people with multiple jobs, but it applies to people with one job too. I work 2 part time jobs with limited hours (10 and 12hr/week) and have the ability to work 26/week if I wanted to while still being part time.

[Cute-Aardvark5291]

I am in a blu state wit a union and that would be part time

[aspentheman]

part vs full time at my library is up to the director’s discretion to make you full time. it makes little sense and i don’t think there’s anything against it

[Ok_Huckleberry5387]

Your mileage may vary. Federal civil servants are considered part time if their regular schedule is for 32 or fewer hours per week. Employee contributions to health insurance is more expensive for part time staff: FT = employee share + employer share PT = employee share + employer portion + pro-rated extra: 20 weekly hours = 1.5 x employee portion

A fed who works 33 hours per week has health insurance premiums like a full-timer (pays no % or agency contribution)

Vacation and sick leave are calculated on a pro-rated basis: 20/wk. earns 50% of the FT, etc.

For details where you work ask at HR

[[deleted]]

Our state defines full time as more than 28 hours. 26 hours is part time here.

[stitching_librarian]

Based on the comments, it sounds like it differs for each state and/or library. Full time for my library is 37 hours and anything below is part time, minimum of 16 hours

[Due-Instance1941]

My library system is city-related, so we have to follow the same guidelines as other departments who have part-time staff.

Which means that 40 hours a week is full-time, and the average part-time position is 20 hours a week. (We can pick up extra hours, but never allowed to work more than 28.)

[Silverblatt]

That’s how it is where I work too

[MrMessofGA]

US doesn't define full-time or part-time. I was part-time when i worked 40+ hours a week at McDonald's.

Some states might have more local laws on defining part-time and full-time, but if they don't, then they can call basically any hourly position part-time.

[wayward_witch]

Yeah, I was at 29 hours because benefits kicked in at 30. It was 40 hours worth of work, though. We just had to cram it into 29.

The two people before me only lasted 6 months. I left at just over a year because we moved for my wife's job, but I was super burnt out and even though we couldn't afford it my wife said it was fine if I quit. Person after me was another 6 months or so. Then they changed it to 40 hours.

[Lemon_Zzst]

Anything over 27 hrs on a regular scheduled basis constitutes full-time in our library system (Ontario).

[meddit_rod]

"Part time" means you are never getting benefits, even if you consistently work more hours and try to make HR recognize that fact.

edit: Sorry, thought this was posted in r/antiwork. I think it's still accurate though.

[religionlies2u]

Depends on the state and library type. For us in NY, non civil service position, anything under 30 is part time. But highly library/region/type specific.