the labour process, changing nature of work, management and organisation

what is the labour process

the role that people that people play as they apply their labour at work the produce goods and services

what does autonomy mean

independence

pre industrial society

• factories

• low pay

• bad working conditions

• urbanisation

• goods were hand crafted by family

industrial society

• little independence

• work and home are separated

• people sell their labour

• employers control place of work - hours and days

• technology

what do marxists think about industrialisation

• could lead to alienation because workers cant afford what they make e.g. ford

• only taught one skill

what do functionalists think about industrialisation

• durkheim says it leads to organic solidarity durkheim says it may lead to individualisation and anomie

what does organic solidarity mean

society is brought together through independent work roles

what did abercrombie identify

4 types of control in the work place

what are the 4 types of control in the work place

• direct control

• technical control

• bureaucratic control

• responsible autonomy

direct control

clear supervisions by the owners/managers

• typically found in small business

technical control

nature of jobs/speed of work are controlled by technology, little skill

bureaucratic control

workers are controlled by the hierarchy of authority

responsible autonomy

• workers are given a degree of discretion/control over their work

scientific management

when scientific principles are applied to the workplace

taylorism

breaking down the work into the simplest elements

• 1 person does 1 task

fordism

supportive for taylorism

fordism explanation

taylors priciples were first applied

• used in the ford factory

• assembly line

• repetative tasks because there was only 1 model and colour of car

why dont workers notice the extent of how much they are being exploited

false consciousness

critical evaluation of fordism

• flexible specialisation

flexible specialisation

• piore and sabel

• customers are becoming more demanding and want customised products so this doesnt work anymore

what do post modernists argue about flexible specialisation

it allows for the choice and diversity between people

mcdonaldisation

fast food restaurants are domination more sectors of society

effiiciency in fast food

• tasks are positioned streamline around the kitchen

• people who make fries

• people who make burges

• people who make drinks

calculability in fast food

e.g. the meat and cheese in a maccies is similar weight and size so it can easily be processes

predictability in fast food

customers

• know the menu

• know theres no milshakes

• know theres quick food

control in fast food

• employees are told exactly what to do

• punishments

• shift manager

deskilling

braverman criticises work under capitalism

• managers cant trust them to work efficiently

• minimise the autonomy

• scientific management

what perspective is braverman

marxist

how to criticise deskilling

upskilling

• gallie found that workers need to be more skilled now

• teachers need a degree in a subject and in teaching

give an example of a job that has been deskilled

a chef in maccies because you wont come out with a qualification because you only did one type of food

why are jobs less secure because of deskilling

it doesnt take long to train people so its easy to fire someone and take on someone else quite quickly

what are some jobs that have been replaced by tech

• cashier

• factory workers

what is friedman critical of

bravermans deskilling thesis

why is friedman critical of bravermans deskilling thesis

he says that employers will achieve more if they give the workers responsible autonomy

what is responsible autonomy

allowing the workers to use their own initiative with a limited control of the labour process

why would responsible autonomy lead to high productivity and effiiciency

workers like have responsibility because theyll feel a sense of pride in their work

how does responsible autonomy link to false class consciousness

the employers will give responsible autonomy because they know they’ll work harder

who created the human relations theory

elton mayo in the 1920’s

human relations theory

workers were more productive is they felt valued, less controlled and enjoyed their work

how was work made more rewarding

• job enrichment

• job rotation

• job enlargement

• teamwork

what is job enrichment

more independence and responsibility for decision making

what is job rotation

giving a wider variety of jobs to do

what is job enlargement

wider range tasks of skills

what is the hawthorne effect

when people act differently when they know they are being observed

alienation

where workers lack power and have o job satisfaction/fulfilment

extrinsic attitude

• rewards come from the outside e.g. money

• will feel alienated

• low job satisfaction

intrinsic attitude

• rewards come from within e.g. enjoyment

• less alienation

• more job satisfaction

where does marx thinks alienation comes from

when workers lack power and controlm

why did the workers not end up revolting according to marx

they felt alienated and believed no one else would go with them

powerless

worker has no control over decisions made

meaningless

work is seen as pointless as they only make one part of the finished project

isolation

friendships are hard to form and workers feel like cogs in a machine

self estrangement

they feel like their full potential is not being met with no creativity or expression

technical determinism

blauner

• alienation is due to the lack of control technology gives the worker

how does craft production lead to high kevels of job satisfaction

• workers make a product from start to finish

• they use manual skills

• they have a sense of control and pride

how does mechanisation lead to alienation

• felt powerless

• little control

• feel insignificant

how does assembly line production lead to low levels of job satisfaction

they feel like a cog in a machine because they are repeating the same task over and over

how does automation lead to low levels of alienation

they work in solidarity with other employees and have the opportunity to connect with other

what us automation

when workers have the responsibility to maintain, run and supervise complex machinery

how do marxists criticise blauner

they say he focuses too much on tech as the cause for alienation when its actually the fact that the workers are separated from eachother

why is blauners work outdated

assembly line work doesnt really happen anymore

how would employees get back at employers

• purposely work slowly

• only complete the bare minimum

• arrive late

what could the employers do to reduce what employees do

• improve working conditions

• increase pay

• offer bonuses

• praise employees

whats the difference between employment and work

employment = someone hires you to do a task

work = the labour completed by a person

what are some things that work influences

• sleep

• social life

• friends

• income and lifestyle

• values and attitudes

what did the sociologist parker focus on

male full time employment and how their work influences their leisure time

what are the 3 work leisure patterns that parker identified

• opposition

• neutrality

• extension

what is the opposition group parker came up with

• work = physically hard and male dominated work e.g. mining, army

• leisure = sharp contrast to their work e.g. pub, watching football

what is the neutrality group that parker came up with

• work = boring, routine work low job satisfaction e.g. assembly line, supermarket

• leisure = relaxation with home and family e.g. DIY

what is the extension group that parker came up with

• work = high levels or personal commitment and job satisfaction e.g. teacher or doctor

• leisure = work related e.g. making powerpoints