25. efficiency and employment

contract work

temporary employment by an organisation to do a specific project or piece of work

casual work

temporary employment that is not regular or fixed

delayering

removing unproductive parts of the management hierarchy to make organisations more flexible and efficient

downsizing

decreasing the number of permanent employees working for an organization

flexible labour market

a situation in which it is easy for companies to hire non-permanent staff

job sharing

employing two or more people on a part-time basis to perform a job normally available to one person working full time

outsourcing or contracting-out

a situation in which a company employs another organization to do some of its work, rather than using its own employees to do it

rationalisation or restructuring

reorganizing a company, business or system in a new way to reduce costs and improve efficiency and effectiveness

relocation or delocalisation

moving some of a business's activities (production) to another place or country

rightsizing

he practice of making a company or an organization smaller by reducing the number of people working for it, or to become smaller in this way (used especially by organizations that want to avoid using the word "downsize")