Temporal flexibility Self‐scheduling/flexible scheduling Self‐scheduling or flexible scheduling interventions involve changes in start and finish times to enable increased choice and control regarding working hours. This type of intervention allows the individual needs of the worker to be taken into account when organising shifts and in systems with higher levels of flexibility workers can participate in the design of the roster/rota (Barton 1993). Flexitime Flexitime or flextime involves a variable work schedule which deviates from traditional 'office' hours and allows workers to choose their own start and finish times to align with extraneous commitments (Kuang‐Jung 2001). Flexitime schedules often involve a core period (e.g. 11.00 to 15.00) during which time all employees are expected to be in the workplace (Dunham 1987). Some organisations may request that workers plan schedules in advance. Annualised hours Annualised hours represent another form of non‐standard working hours where the employee is contracted to work an aggregate number of hours annually and the actual weekly hours worked may vary (Arrowsmith 2007). Changes to hours worked (for example, to accommodate employee time off) can be negotiated by the employee but often are dictated by the employer to accommodate variations in demand or workflow. Annualised hours remain a rare form of flexible working in many economies which, as Arrowsmith 2007 speculates, may be due to the need for collective bargaining and high levels of trust in the employer/worker relationship. Overtime Overtime arrangements, where the employee works beyond their contracted hours, are likely to be dictated by organisational demand, productivity requirements and staffing dynamics (De Raeve 2007) but in some instances overtime may be requested by the worker, for example for financial gain. Spatial flexibility Teleworking Teleworking is an arrangement which involves working off site and communicating with the office by telecommunication links. Home working is one form of teleworking. Workers might adopt teleworking arrangements for the entirety of their work schedule; alternatively they might work remotely for a proportion of their time on a weekly or monthly basis (Buddendick 1999). Contract flexibility Involuntary part‐time For involuntary part‐time workers the choice to work part‐time (less than 35 hours per week) is out of their control and is dictated by the organisation or employer for one or more of the following reasons: slack work, material shortages, equipment or plant repair, start of a new job/end of an old job, avoidance of the labour rights and social insurance costs associated with a full‐time employee (Dooley 2000). Partial/gradual retirement Partial or gradual retirement is defined here as progressive withdrawal from work or withdrawal and subsequent return to part‐time work (de Vaus 2007). In other words, individuals are working less than a standard working week but are not fully retired. Latulippe 2000 (p.179) define partial retirement as a transition period of part‐time work between an employee's career job and retirement, which includes payment of either a partial or a full pension. Partial or gradual retirement is likely to be voluntary but in some cases may be dictated by the employer. Fixed‐term contract Fixed‐term contracts are a form of marginal or precarious employment dictated by the employer and characterise individuals working without a permanent contract for a fixed period of time (Rodriguez 2002). Fixed‐term contracts tend to be disproportionately spread across the workforce, with lower socio‐economic status workers having an elevated risk of exposure (Siegrist 2002). Job share Job sharing is a voluntary arrangement which involves two or more people sharing the responsibilities of a full‐time job and the salary, leave and benefits between them by working part‐time on an ongoing basis (Anderson 1989; Branine 2003). The individuals involved in the job share are charged with the responsibility of dividing the workload effectively and equitably and ensuring all duties are completed (Adamson 1994; Anderson 1989).