Synopses & Reviews
This book provides a lively and accessible introduction to key new areas in the contemporary study of work. While traditional accounts of work have tended to focus upon male manual workers in factories, recent developments have shifted the notions of what counts as work, what work is, and where it takes place. This topical book takes up these developments, broadening our understanding of work.
Complementing the second edition of Grint's successful Sociology of Work textbook, this book is divided into five parts, each of which explores recent developments in the theory and practice of work. The wide range of substantive areas covered includes domestic work, globalization, gender, resistance, child labour and labour relations. The theoretical approaches incorporate theories of technology, time, identity, change and discipline. The authors include some of the leading international writers in their fields today, such as Stephen Barley, John Hassard, Bruno Latour and Judy Wajcman, plus some of the rising stars of the future. Each part has an introduction by the editor which contextualizes the selections, and there is a general introduction to help students navigate the text.
Work and Society: A Readerwill be essential reading for anyone taking courses in the sociology of work, organizational behaviour, business studies, studying MBAs or wishing to understand the contemporary world of work.
Review
'The wide-ranging scope of this book provides something fresh for the most jaded specialist and encourages newcomers to the field to discard their comforting prejudices.'
Ray Pahl, Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Essex'Any teacher who wants students to have a stimulating, original and thought provoking introduction to the sociology of work should ensure that this collection is in their hands.' -- Colin Crouch, Professor of Sociology, European University Institute, Florence
'Work is sure to remain central to our lives yet the future of work has been subject to so much spin that it seems to have got out of control. Keith Grint recognizes the dangers and steers a judicious course between apocalyptic visions and plodding his selection for the Reader. The wide-ranging scope of this book provides something fresh for the most jaded specialist and encourages newcomers to the field to discard their comforting prejudice.' -- Ray Pahl, Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Essex
About the Author
Keith Grintis Reader in Organizational Behaviour at the Said Business School, Oxford and a Fellow of Templeton College.
Table of Contents
Figures.
Tables.
Acknowledgements.
Editor's Note.
Abbreviations.
Editor's Introduction.
Part I Beyond the Conventions of Work.
Introduction.
1 Time.
Images of Time in Work and OrganizationS Clegg, C Hardy and W R Nord.
2 Technology.
Technology is Society made DurableB Latour.
3 Age.
Child LabourC Grootaert and R Kanbur.
Part II Outside the Factory Gate.
Introduction.
4 The Customer.
The Culture of the Customer P du Gay and G Salaman.
5 Domestic Work.
The Superwoman Syndrome: Gender Differences in Attitudes towards Equal Opportunities at Work and Towards Domestic Responsibilities at HomeS Newell.
Part III Configuring Consensus at Work.
Introduction.
6 Culture.
The Invention of Corporate Culture: A History of the Histories of CadburyM Rowlinson and J Hassard.
7 Discipline.
Disciplinary Power in the Modern CorporationM Alvesson and H Willmott.
8 Resistance.
Strategies of Resistance: Power, Knowledge and Subjectivity in the WorkplaceD Collinson.
Part IV After Class.
Introduction.
9 Race and Ethnicity.
Employment T Modood.
10 Gender.
It's Hard to be SoftJ Wajcman.
Part V The Future of Work.
Introduction.
11 Globalization.
Variety of Pattern of the Post-Fordist Economy: Why are the 'Old Times' still with us and the 'New Times' yet to come?F Belussi and F Garibaldo.
12 Change.
Design and Devotion: Surges of Rational and Normative Ideologies of ControlS R Barley and G Kunda.
Editor's Bibliography.
Index