When non-standard work becomes precarious: Insights from the New Zealand call centre industry

The issue of precarious employment has gained increasing currency over recent years, as OECD countries have shifted away from traditional standard employment models. Nevertheless, there has been little empirical research on the experiences of nonstandard workers and the links that can be established with precarious work. This article attempts to address this gap by introducing precarious employment as a sub-set of non-standard work and highlighting its distinguishing features. The Tucker model is introduced as a useful bridge between non-standard work and precariousness, and is used as a framework for examining employment experiences within two New Zealand call centres. Initial observations indicate evidence of precariousness in both workplaces, although more severe in the case of the small, outsourced call centre. In-depth analysis suggests precariousness varies depending on the nature of the employment arrangement and questions are put forth about the applicability of the 'Tucker' model to the call centre context.