The Thought of WorkJohn W. BuddgCenter for Human Resources and Labor StudiesCarlson School of ManagementUNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTAA presentation to the Women & Work Research Group University of Sydney Business School y y y17 February 2012Introduction Introduction My research has advocated theyexplicit use of frames of reference that recognize assumptions andg pvalues regarding the objectives and operation of the employmentp p yrelationship John W. Budd, Employment with a Human Face: Balancing Efficiency, Equity, and Voice (Cornell University Press, 2004). Stephen F. Befort and John W. Budd, Invisible Hands, Invisible Objectives: Bringing Workplace Law and Public Policy Into Focus (Stanford University Press, But what about how we conceptualize work?g g p y ( y ,2009).2p Often overlooked, unstated, and/or narrowIntroduction Introduction My starting point: How do thinkers think about work? Not occupations, job quality, working conditions, deskilling, etc. des g, e c. But fundamentally thinking about what work isWh t it l ? Wh t d it t ? What are its roles? What does it mean to us? Individually Societally How do we conceptualize or model work? And why is this so important? And why is this so important? Result: John W. Budd, The Thought of 3Work (Cornell University Press, 2011)The Broad Scope of Work The Broad Scope of WorkR tiWhat isRemunerationPaid UnpaidWhat is work?Outside the Home /Wage and salaried jobsCasual employmentVolunteeringCivic servicetyHome / HouseholdCasual employmentSelf employmentCivic serviceSlaveryActivitWithin the Home /Household-based farmingFamily-run businessesSubsistence farmingHouseworkhere of Home / HouseholdyHome-based contract work (putting out system)Elder and child careSlaverySph4The Broad Scope of Work The Broad Scope of Work Work touches many aspects of life so it is studied by Work touches many aspects of life, so it is studied by numerous disciplines, such as Anthropology Law Anthropology Archaeology Economics Law Org. Behavior Philosophy Economics Geography History Philosophy Political Science Psychology History Human Resources Industrial Relations Psychology Sociology Theology Industrial Relations Theology But the academic division of labor tends to create non-5competing, balkanized conceptualizations of workThe Broad Scope of Work The Broad Scope of Work Work touches many aspects of life so it is studied by Work touches many aspects of life, so it is studied by numerous disciplines, such as Anthropology LawObj i b id h d i di i i f Anthropology Archaeology Economics Law Org. Behavior PhilosophyObjective: bridge the academic division of labor to promote a deeper, multidisciplinary d di f k b i Economics Geography History Philosophy Political Science Psychologyunderstanding of work by extracting, integrating, and synthesizing the rich i ll l i f k f d History Human Resources Industrial Relations Psychology Sociology Theologyintellectual conceptions of work found across the humanities and the social and behavioral i Industrial Relations Theology But the academic division of labor tends to create non-sciences6competing, balkanized conceptualizations of workThe Many Faces of Work The Many Faces of Work7The Many Faces of Work The Many Faces of Work8Conceptualizing Work Conceptualizing Work Using the disciplinary theorizing on work found in the humanities and social and behavioral sciences1. a Curse2 F dhumanities and social and behavioral sciences Work asEach Chapter2. Freedom3. a Commodity Each Chapter History of the idea Key meanings4. Occupational Citizenship5. DisutilityKey meanings Implications Research6. Personal Fulfillment7. a Social Relation Practice Limitations 8. Caring for Others9. Identity 9y10. ServiceConceptualizing Work Conceptualizing Work These conceptualizations do not simply describe alternative perspectives on work They actively structure our understandings of and oury y gexperiences with work by providing frames of references, norms, values, and attitudes toward work, , ,that actors translate into specific practicesResearch questionsConceptualizationsResearch questionsHR practicesPublic policies Conceptualizations of workPublic policiesJudicial interpretationsSocial approval10Social approvalEconomic resourcesConceptualizing Work Conceptualizing Work Work as1. a Curse2. Freedom3. a Commodity 4. Occupational CitizenshipRemainder of my presentation Describe each of the 10 t li tip p5. Disutility6. Personal Fulfillmentconceptualizations Consider some implications Research6. Personal Fulfillment7. a Social Relation 8 Caring for Others Research Private and public policies8. Caring for Others9. Identity 10 Servicepo c es1110. ServiceWork as a Curse Work as a Curse Work as an unquestioned burden necessary for human i l i t f th i l d survival or maintenance of the social order A gods curse such as Gods curse of Adam and Eve Hard work as penitential activity to seek redemption The curse of those at the lower levels of the natural social hierarchy Aristotles natural slaves Todays marginal workersAccept Polluted castesy g Take this Job and Shove It Work expected to be lousy and without deep meaning^Accept12Work expected to be lousy and without deep meaning so little need for questioning, reform, etc.Work as a Curse Work as a CurseAndy Capp (May 31, 2007)13Work as Freedom Work as Freedom Freedom: the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)1. Work as the freedom to create Imposing culture on nature (Arendts Homo faber)2 Work as freedom from others 2. Work as freedom from others Lockean property rights / political liberalism Freedom to contract / economic liberalism Work creates the independence needed for being seen as a citizen and as a contributing member of society But perhaps time to re-think the Western view of 14p pdominating / mastering natureWork as a Commodity Rise of economic liberalism and industrial capitalism Work as a Commodityleads to a society of individual traders Whats being traded? work effort So work becomes seen as a commodity: An individuals capacity to workthat is their An individual s capacity to work that is, their physical and mental capabilities, or what Marx called labor poweris thought of as an abstract quantityp g q ythat can be bought and sold Work is nothing more than a generic input into a Work is nothing more than a generic input into a production function, and employers and workers buy and sell generic units of this commodity called work 15g y(or labor power)Work as Occupational Citizenship Occupational Citizenship Labor is not a commodity; rather, workers are human beings who are members of communities and societies To see workers as citizens is to decommodify them and give them a status as more than just factors of production or individuals seeking personal fulfillment or identities Occupational citizenship: the achievement of rights to which employees are entitled because of membership in a human community, and which are attained by i i i l h h k f institutional rather than market forces Work as an activity pursued by human members of a i i l d i i h d d d16community entitled to certain rights and standardsWork as Disutility Work as Disutility Why do we work? When work is a commodity, we work in order to earn money In mainstream economic thought, individuals maximize a utility function increasing in goods, services, and a utility function increasing in goods, services, and leisure Work is important for providing these goods and Work is important for providing these goods and services (directly or indirectly)B k i lf i d d ili But work itself is assumed to reduce utility Work is strenuous and painful 17 Work conflicts with pleasurable leisureWork as Disutility Work as Disutility So work is disutility: a lousy activity tolerated only toy y y yearn income to buy goods, services, and leisure that provide pleasure p p Need extrinsic rewards to compensate for effortH h H ibl (J 3 2009) Hagar the Horrible (June 3, 2009)18Work as Personal Fulfillment But what about a workers psychological well-being?Work as Personal Fulfillmentp y g g Contrary to English language usage, workers are not just hands (farmhand factory hand deckhands (all justhands(farmhand, factory hand, deckhands ( all hands on deck), kitchen hands, etc.)Hagar the Horrible (February 10, 2011)19Work as Personal Fulfillment Work as Personal Fulfillment Work as physical and psychological functioning that (ideally) satisfies individual needs Inner joy of serving God (various theologies) e joy o se v g God (va ous eo og es) Esteem and self-actualization after physiological and safety needs are fulfilled (Maslow) safety needs are fulfilled (Maslow) Achievement, competence, challenge, and personal th (H b ) growth (Herzberg) Job satisfaction Work as mental stimulian activity that arouses cognitive and affective (emotional/attitudinal) 20g ( )functioningWork as Personal Fulfillment Note: Work as Personal Fulfillment is an important, but Work as Personal Fulfillmentoften unstated, intellectual foundation of human resource management (HRM) Goal of HRM: improve individual and organizational performance by recognizing the human factor p y g ginherent in employees Design work that provides satisfaction and intrinsic Design work that provides satisfaction and intrinsic rewards (fulfillment)U t l th t id tif i di id l h l i l Use tools that identify individual psychological differences (e.g., ability or personality) to select the i ht l f th i ht j b21right employees for the right jobsWork as a Social Relation Work as a Social Relation Individuals do not work in isolation; they interact within networks of bosses, co-workers, customers, and others Work does not occur in a vacuum; it occurs within a Work does not occur in a vacuum; it occurs within a social structure of social institutions (social norms, conventions rules and procedures) and power relations conventions, rules, and procedures) and power relations Work is therefore also theorized as a social relation Human interaction experienced in and shaped by networks, social institutions, and power relations , , p A social exchange constrained by social norms, and governed by societally defined rights to resources22governed by societally-defined rights to resourcesWork as a Social Relation Work as a Social RelationZits (May 23, 2005)23Work as Caring Work as CaringApopular symbol for A popular symbol for Danish women fighting for equal pay in the earlyq p y y1970s, as displayed on a Female Workers C f d i l i Confederations plate in the Workers Museum, Copenhagen Copenhagen 24Work as Caring Work as Caring Feminist scholarship: Unpaid housework and other i i i i h d d i caring activities that do not produce economic commodities is real work Work as caring: the physical, cognitive, and emotional effort required to attend to and maintain others Reveals gendered work experiences Working women frequently bear a disproportionate ofWo g wo e eque t y bea a d sp opo t o ate othe burdens of household work Working women confront gendered expectations Working women confront gendered expectations about appropriate occupations, pay, and work behaviors that are frequently rooted in idealized25behaviors that are frequently rooted in idealized visions of caring, domesticity, and femininity Work as Identity Work as Identity Work as something that helps make you sense of who you are and where you stand in the social structure Not just a source of economic or psychological utility, but a source of psychological and social meaning Derived from the role of work at various levels Personal identity: descriptors related to ones work Social identity: occupation, employer, and other groupy p , p y , g passociations Interactionist identity: role identities negotiated with Interactionist identity: role identities negotiated with society Human-kind identity: work as the way humans are a26Human kind identity: work as the way humans are a conscious species being (Marx)Work as Service Work as Service Serving not yourself or your immediate family but... Gods Kingdom Work as co-creation Work as a calling The household enterprise The household enterprise East Asian Confucian norms on the importance of the multigenerational family the multigenerational family The community Volunteering and civic service The nation27 Military and economic nationalismWork as Service Work as ServiceD Y Dong Yong, selling himself b hi to bury his father, as an l f exemplar of filial piety28Work as Service Work as ServiceAdmiral Nelsons HMS Admiral Nelson s HMS Victory: England expects that every man will do his duty. every man will do his duty.29Conceptualizing Work Conceptualizing Work1 CW k1. a Curse2. Freedom3 C di Work as3. a Commodity 4. Occupational Citizenship5 Di tilit 5. Disutility6. Personal Fulfillment7 S i l R l ti 7. a Social Relation 8. Caring for Others9 Id tit 9. Identity 10. Service30Conceptualizing Work Conceptualizing Work Each conceptualization represents an important way of thinking abo t ork ithin one or more academic thinking about work within one or more academic disciplines or philosophical/theological traditions Each forms a foundation for a certain paradigmatic Each forms a foundation for a certain paradigmatic approach to analyzing and designing work, work-related institutions and practices and related issues institutions and practices, and related issues Thus, many uses of this framework Deepen our understanding of work and work-related Deepen our understanding of work, and work-related practices and institutions Broaden perspectives on HR issues (e g motivation) Broaden perspectives on HR issues (e.g., motivation) Improve cross-disciplinary academic discourse Reveal works fundamental importance for individuals31 Reveal work s fundamental importance for individuals and societiesImplications Implications Important Note: these conceptualizations do not simply describe alternative perspectives on work They actively structure our understandings of and oury y gexperiences with work by providing frames of references, norms, values, and attitudes toward work, , ,that actors translate into specific practicesResearch questionsConceptualizationsResearch questionsHR practicesPublic policies Conceptualizations of workPublic policiesJudicial interpretationsSocial approval32Social approvalEconomic resourcesResearch Implications Research ImplicationsCommodityOccupational CitizenshipThe ideas about work held by CitizenshipDisutilitydifferent groups of scholars affect their research by making Personal Fulfillmentcertain issues interesting, rendering other issues Social Relationunimportant, and guiding the analysesCaring For Others33IdentityResearch Implications Research ImplicationsCommodityEconomists analyze labor demand and labor supply b modeling ho rs of ork as an optimi ation prob by modeling hours of work as an optimization prob.Occupational CitizenshipRejecting primacy of markets, ER scholars analyze the diverse range of institutions that govern workCitizenshipthe diverse range of institutions that govern workDisutilityPersonnel economics focuses on the use of extrinsic incentives (pay for performance, tournaments, etc.) (p y p , , )Personal FulfillmentI-O/OB scholars emphasize cognitive and affective mental processes (job satisfaction, justice, mood)Social RelationSociologists analyze norms and power structures at work (e.g., labor process theory)Caring For OthersFeminist scholars analyze the sexual division of labor, gendered work issues, and the human body34IdentityPostmodernists analyze how discursive practices shape work-related subjective identitiesPractical Implications I Practical Implications I By providing the intellectual foundation for designing particular employment practices, ideas about work also shape how individuals experience work in practice Alternative conceptualizations of work yield contrasting views about conflict and consent in the employmentp yrelationship What are the perceived barriers to obtaining full What are the perceived barriers to obtaining full work effort from employees?Wh t ti ti l t t i l t What motivational strategies can employers use to obtain higher levels of employee engagement andff t?35effort? Practical Implications I Practical Implications IBarriers toImplications for Work Work as Full Work Effortp fMotivationA Curse Work is painful,Preach acceptancemonotonous, etc.Disutility Work is painful; leisure isProvide financial preferable incentivesPersonalWork is stressful andStructure work to be Fulfillment unfulfilling intrinsically rewardingFreedom Work is regimented,Allow for creativityconstrained, and scriptedOccupational i i hiWork lacks minimum d d d iGuarantee minimum d d d i36Citizenship standards and voice standards and voicePractical Implications I Practical Implications IBarriers to Implications for WorkWork asBarriers to Full Work EffortImplications for Work MotivationASocial Work is structured to Structure work to A Social RelationWork is structured to serve the interests of the powerfulStructure work to force compliance; create norms that powerful create norms that disguise inequalities and that obligate effortCaring For OthersWork is structured in ways that devalue caring Structure work to reduce discrimination for others and that serve the interests of menand conflicts with other spheres of h lif37human lifePractical Implications I Practical Implications IBarriers toImplications for Work Work asa ie s toFull Work Effortmplications fo Wo kMotivationIdentity Work creates a negative Structure work to Identity Work creates a negative or contradictory sense of selfStructure work to create a desirable sense of selfService Work is viewed in ways that devalue serving Structure work to value and provide others rather than commodity productionopportunities for serving others More generally, the conceptualizations provide diverse perspectives on, and thus deeper understanding, of human 38pe spec ves o , a d us deepe u de s a d g, o u aresource managementPractical Implications II Practical Implications IIEach of the conceptualizations of work also has important implications for how we think about worker well-being and thus employment regulation39Practical Implications II Practical Implications IIA Curse Work expected to be lousy and without deep meaningCu se Wo e pec ed o be ousy d w ou deep e gso little need for / justification for employment regulation.Freedom Primacy of individual freedom means that freedom to contract and freedom to quit are key regulatory Al i f i k concerns. Also, importance of creative work.Commodity Efficient allocation of labor is foremost concern. P li i th t t l b bilit k I Policies that promote labor mobility are key. Ignores unpaid and other forms of non-commoditized work. Occupational Employment regulation can be a key method for Occupational CitizenshipEmployment regulation can be a key method for supporting the achievement of citizenship rights, including minimum labor standards, safety standards,40including minimum labor standards, safety standards, and protections for collective employee voice. Practical Implications II Practical Implications IIDisutility Work is expected to be lousy so minimal need for Disutility Work is expected to be lousy so minimal need for regulation. Work is only important for producing income so this is the focus of regulatory concern, but income so this is the focus of regulatory concern, but need to guard against creating disincentives to work. PersonalWork should be psychologically rewarding, but Fulfillmentp y g y g,subjective, unitarist, and collective assumptions favor managerialism over shared governance.Social RelationSocially-created institutions and power structures are recognized as important elements of work, so l t l ti h ld dd ( d l employment regulation should address (and also reflect) these issues of institutions and power. 41Practical Implications II Practical Implications IIC i F R i diti d f f i f Caring For OthersRecognizes non-commoditized forms of caring for others as work, and draws attention to the need to include these forms of work in conversations about include these forms of work in conversations about employment regulation.Identity Sees the deep importance of work for individuals, andy S p p ,thereby provides a basis for substantive employment regulation.Service Recognizes non-commoditized forms of serving for others as work, and draws attention to the need to i l d h f f k i i b include these forms of work in conversations about employment regulation.42Ideas About Work Matter Conceptualizations of work shape research, practice, and policy agendas Influence how we understand workand how we experience it But the role of these ideas is frequently limiting Researchers focus on questions rooted in one or two ways of thinking about work y g Practitioners design employment practices based on a focused conceptualization of work p Especially work as disutility or personal fulfillment43 Need to embrace diverse conceptualizations of workConclusion Goal is to think fundamentally about what work is How do we conceptualize work? Research and practice would benefit from recognizing Research and practice would benefit from recognizing this complexity by incorporating of a broader range of ideas about work into a multidisciplinary approach ideas about work into a multidisciplinary approach And therefore into the resulting theories and policies The ten conceptualizations reinforce the deep importance The ten conceptualizations reinforce the deep importance of work for the human experienceW k i t i t t t t k f Work is too important to take for granted, but too complex to be d d i l t li ti44reduced a single conceptualizationConceptualizing Work Conceptualizing WorkA Curse An unquestioned burden necessary for human survival or maintenance of the social order. Freedom Away to achieve independence from nature or Freedom A way to achieve independence from nature or other humans, and to express human creativity.AC dit A b t t tit f d ti ff t th t h A Commodity An abstract quantity of productive effort that has tradable economic value. Occupational CitizenshipAn activity pursued by human members of a community entitled to certain rights.Disutility A lousy activity tolerated to obtain goods and services that provide pleasure. 45Conceptualizing Work Conceptualizing WorkPersonalPhysical and psychological functioning that Fulfillment (ideally) satisfies individual needs. ASocial Human interaction embedded in social norms A Social RelationHuman interaction embedded in social norms, institutions, and power structures.Caring for OthersThe physical, cognitive, and emotional effort required to attend to and maintain others. Identity A method for understanding who you are and where you stand in the social structure. Service The devotion of effort to others, such as God, household, community, or country.46household, community, or country. Further Reading Further ReadingJohn W. Budd, The Thought of Work(Ithaca, NY: Cornell(University Press, 2011).47Contact Information Contact InformationJohn W. BuddDepartment of Work and Organizations p gCenter for Human Resources and Labor Studies3 300 Carlson School of Management 3-300 Carlson School of ManagementUniversity of Minnesota321 19th Avenue SouthMinneapolis Minnesota 55455-0438 Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 0438jbudd@umn.edu 48