chapter 12 work and the workplace. the importance of work source of income source of pride and...

Chapter 12

Work And The Workplace

The Importance of Work

• Source of income• Source of pride and accomplishment• Source of identity and self esteem• Provides meaning to life and and is a

major part of our adult identity

The Industrial Revolution

• The first transformation at the beginning of the nineteenth century

• Rural and small towns• Most were employed in the primary

sector producing raw materials»Farming»Fishing»Forestry»Mining

The Industrial Revolution

• The Industrial revolution shifted jobs from the primary sector of the economy to the secondary sector

• Transforming raw goods into products»Automobiles »Sewing machines»Furniture

The Industrial Revolution

• Impact of the industrial revolution• Shift to factory work• Shift of jobs from rural to urban• Immigrants and factory work• Industrialization and prosperity

The Information Revolution

• The 1950 and the emergence of the tertiary sector

• From factory to service work»Not all workers benefited from

this shift• Invention of the microchip and the

computer• White collar jobs

Deindustrialzation

• Deindustrialization-decline of industrial production( after1950 )

»Plant closings»Decline in factory jobs»Job displacement »Decline in pay and benefits

Globalization

• Globalization of the economy-expansion of economic activity around the world with little regard for national borders

»Multinational corporations»Shifting jobs to low wage

countries

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• The Dual Labor Market• Two separate labor markets• 1.Primary labor market-occupations that

provide good pay and extensive benefits to workers

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• The Dual Labor Market• Primary labor market jobs tend to be

»Challenging»Good pay and benefits»More secure»Room for advancement in

one’s career

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• The Dual Labor Market• Examples of primary labor market job

categories»Professionals»Managers and executives»Some high skilled jobs in

factories

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• The Dual Labor Market• Two separate labor markets• 2. Secondary labor market-jobs

»Boring and routine»Low pay and few benefits»Less secure

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• The Dual Labor Market• Examples of secondary labor market job

categories»Retail sales»Telemarketing»Building maintenance»Laborers

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• Dangers to workers• In 1970 the federal government

established OSHA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration

• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

»Conducts research on workplace hazards

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• Dangers to workers• Toxic Substances control Act (1976)• Guidelines for handling chemicals in the

workplace• Test for harmful chemicals

Problems of the U.S. Workplace

• Dangers to workers• Jobs and injuries• Jobs that have the highest risk of death

»Mining»Agriculture»Construction

• Jobs and health• Job related violence

Workplace Alienation

• Alienation: Marx’s View• Alienation-experience of isolation and

misery from powerlessness in the workplace

• Marx• Work a natural act• Alienation stems from the social nature of

work under capitalism• Capitalism distorts the social nature of work

Workplace Alienation

• Alienation: Weber’s View• Alienation-depersonalization of the

workplace and of society in general due to modern society’s rational focus on efficiency

• Weber the cause of alienation is the rational nature of the organization of work

»Individuals have become detached from the social and creative aspect of work

» Work has become highly impersonal

Workplace Alienation

• Alienation: Weber’s View• Rationalization of society led to the

industrial revolution• Rational modes of action replaced

tradition and custom

MacDonaldization and the Rise of “McJobs”

• George Ritzer and MacDonaldization• MacDonaldization- defining work in four

principles• 1.Efficiency• 2.Predictability• 3.Uniformity• 4.Controlling workers through automation

MacDonaldization and the Rise of “McJobs”

• Characteristics of the McJobs (Jobs)»1.Work that involves simple

tasks»2.Work that provides little

satisfaction»3.Work that is predicable and

repetitive»4.Work that has become

machine driven»5.Work that is dehumanizing

to the worker • Workers become automatons

The “Temping”of the Workplace

• Deindustrialization and the growth in part-time workers

»Low pay»No benefits»Little control over their work

Unemployment

• Reasons for Unemployment• About four to five percent

unemployment may be normal»New to the work force

entering for the first time»In between jobs

• Economic downturn

Who is at Risk for Unemployment?

• Less educated• Racial and ethnic minorities• Young

Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

• Just entered into better jobs• Las hired first fired• Institutional discrimination – bias

built into the operation of the economy, education and other social institutions

»Secondary labor market»Under representation of women

and minorities in higher education

Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

• The Glass Ceiling- barriers ( often invisible) that prevent minorities from moving up in an organization

Workplace Segregation

• Workplace is segregated by race and gender

»Minorities concentrated in the least desirable jobs

• Labor Unions• Labor unions-worker organizations that

seek to improve wages and working conditions through various strategies, including collective bargaining and strikes

Labor Unions

• Labor unions are a recent development• U.S. Government and the labor

movement of the 1930’s»Railway Labor Act»Norris-La Guardia Act»National Labor Relations Act

Labor Unions

• Union membership grew from 1930 and peaked in the 1970’s

• Since 1970’s decline in union membership until just recently

»Function of structural change a shift from factory jobs to the non union service sector

Telecommuting

• Telecommuting- linking employees to the office using information technology, including telephones,fax machines, and e-mail

»Function of the information revolution

• Telecommuting blurs the distinction between home and work

• Telecommuting and gender discrimination and work

• Worker isolation

Workplace Isolation

• Computer technology reduces the need for face to face interaction

»Workers are connect by information networks

»Social and physical separation and isolation of workers and clients from one another

Controlling Employees

• Computer technology and controlling the behavior of workers

• Keeping an eye on the employee• “Deskilling” Work• Technology and the loss of skills

necessary to perform one’s job»Machines replace human skill

Structural-Functional Analysis: Finding a New

Equilibrium• Structural- functional paradigm-

interrelatedness of social institutions• Impact of technology on established

social patterns• How information technology is shaping

the nature of work and other social institutions

Symbolic-Interaction Analysis: The Meaning of

Work• Symbolic –Interaction paradigm- the

social construction of work• Meanings that people attach to work

and work relationships

Social-Conflict Analysis: Work and Inequality

• Social-conflict – focus is on how inequality impacts work in society

• How work reflects the interest of the upper-class

Conservatives: The Virtues of the Market

• Free-market with a minimum of government regulation

• Downturns are temporary and people will be allocated to where the jobs are

• Individuals should take responsibility for their economic and job well-being

Liberals: The Need for Government

• Free- market with government regulation to insure all interests are taken care of

• Government aid for education and job training

Radicals: The Need for Fundamental Change

• The free-market is the source of economic and worker related problems

• The end of capitalism and the emergence of socialism as the answer to economic and worker related woes