P114 How should we classify on-call workers? A proposed taxonomy for modern working arrangements

INTRODUCTION: Research and guidance materials addressing on-call work typically focus on a narrow set of industries (e.g., emergency services, healthcare). However, modern working arrangements are changing. The casualisation of many industries, combined with the rise in online and app-based working arrangements, means that many workers who can be called to work are not included in current on-call literature. We therefore present a proposed taxonomy for classifying a broader range of on-call workers, based on the work and sociodemographic characteristics of on-call workers in Australia. METHODS: Work arrangements and sociodemographic factors of 1057 Australian adults were assessed in a survey. Questions addressed on-call work undertaken in the previous three months, occupation, work hours, and any non-standard working conditions. RESULTS: At least one workday characterised as ‘on-call’ was reported by 45.5% of respondents, with a higher prevalence in younger individuals (63.1% of respondents aged 18–24 years reported working on-call). On-call work was reported in a range of industries, including management, community and personal service workers, sales workers, machinery operators, and drivers. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that previous reports of on-call work prevalence (typically based on traditional on-call industries such as emergency services) likely underestimate the proportion of individuals who consider themselves on-call workers. As a result, on-call work requires a novel classification system that is able to capture non-traditional on-call work and can differentiate between types of on-call working arrangements. A taxonomy including traditional on-call work, gig economy work, relief, or unscheduled work, and out of hours work is presented.