[PDF] Extending Workplace Democracy eBook

Author : Frank Lindenfeld
Publisher :
Page : 462 pages
File Size : 40,35 MB
Release : 1982
Category : Political Science
ISBN :

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Case studies of the relationship between workers self management and workers control and social change, with particular reference to the USA - discusses psychological aspects (occupational psychology) of working in self-managed enterprises; investigates workers cooperatives, production cooperatives, insurance corporation, legal office and experimental school in Spain, the UK and the USA; considers the functioning (incl. Legal aspects) of American workers' cooperatives, and trade union attitudes. Diagrams, references, statistical tables.

Author : Virginia Doellgast
Publisher : Cornell University Press
Page : 272 pages
File Size : 45,1 MB
Release : 2012-02-17
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 0801463971

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The shift from manufacturing- to service-based economies has often been accompanied by the expansion of low-wage and insecure employment. Many consider the effects of this shift inevitable. In Disintegrating Democracy at Work, Virginia Doellgast contends that high pay and good working conditions are possible even for marginal service jobs. This outcome, however, depends on strong unions and encompassing collective bargaining institutions, which are necessary to give workers a voice in the decisions that affect the design of their jobs and the distribution of productivity gains. Doellgast's conclusions are based on a comparative study of the changes that occurred in the organization of call center jobs in the United States and Germany following the liberalization of telecommunications markets. Based on survey data and interviews with workers, managers, and union representatives, she found that German managers more often took the "high road" than those in the United States, investing in skills and giving employees more control over their work. Doellgast traces the difference to stronger institutional supports for workplace democracy in Germany. However, these democratic structures were increasingly precarious, as managers in both countries used outsourcing strategies to move jobs to workplaces with lower pay and weaker or no union representation. Doellgast's comparative findings show the importance of policy choices in closing off these escape routes, promoting broad access to good jobs in expanding service industries.

Author : Brian Fontaine Snowden
Publisher :
Page : 201 pages
File Size : 23,42 MB
Release : 2009
Category :
ISBN : 9781109597332

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This dissertation deals with the feasibility of having large publicly traded corporations in the United States organized and operated on the principles and practices of workplace democracy. While the United States appears to be a model of democratic society, there seems to be widespread acceptance that democracy is limited to the civic lives of citizens. the research problem involves the interpretation of the term democracy and the legitimacy of expanding the term to include workplace democracy. There are reasons that the ideal of workplace democracy has not been embraced in the United States, which is a primary theme in this dissertation, and includes the issue of the primacy of the corporation as the avatar of capitalism and the reluctance of people to interfere with this economic system. Three methodologies were utilized: a philosophical inquiry was undertaken into the meaning of democracy and how this concept is translated into the everyday lives of people; discussion groups were organized to gather data about the ideas of people who work in large publicly traded corporations and their beliefs about workplace democracy; a case study was done of the world's largest worker cooperative, Mondragon CC of Spain. the key findings demonstrate that people do not understand the concept of workplace democracy, primarily because they have not been raised in institutions that practice democracy. Second, the economic system of capitalism is considered to be a highly effective one for economic growth, and people appear to believe that workplace democracy would not contribute to this success. Finally, the case study of Mondragon CC, the world's largest worker cooperative, demonstrates that a large democratic business can compete and prosper in a capitalist environment. the theoretical implication of this research is that workplace democracy can satisfy the need for the attainment of higher levels of participation and self-determination for all organizational members. Then there is the practical implication that the for-profit business organization be profitable and viable for the long term. Further research is required to reinforce the findings reached in this dissertation.

Author : Donald V. Nightingale
Publisher : University of Toronto Press
Page : 332 pages
File Size : 46,95 MB
Release : 1982-12-15
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 1442655984

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This book begins with a historical review of how authority in the Canadian workplace has changed over the past century. It proceeds to outline a theory of organization which provides a broad conceptual framework for the empirical analysis which follows. This theory is based on five concepts: the values of organizational members; the administrative structure of the organization; the interpersonal and intergroup processes; the reactions and adjustments of organization members; the social, political, economic, and cultural environments of the organization. A sample of 20 industrial organizations was selected to examine the effects of significant employee participation and to test the theory. They are matched pairs: ten permit some form of participation, and ten—similar in size, location, industry, union/non-union status, and work technology—follow conventional hierarchical design. The resulting data demonstrate that greater productivity results from employee participation in decisions relating to their work, in productivity bonuses, and in profit sharing and employee share-ownership plans.

Author : William Joseph Benet
Publisher :
Page : 341 pages
File Size : 19,26 MB
Release : 2006
Category : Democracy
ISBN : 9780494157244

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In this thesis I develop a theoretical model of workplace democracy. My model builds on five broad categories of literature including five exemplary models in order to expand the applicability of workplace democracy to a greater number of workplaces. I identify three reasons for why I believe it is important to expand workplace democracy. First is the relationship of workplace democracy to occupational stress. I believe that: (a) workplace democracy is essential to address the negative impacts of occupational stress; but (b) most efforts to address occupational stress focus on the individual. Second is the relationship of workplace democracy to societal democracy. I believe that: (a) workplace democracy contributes to the attainment of societal democracy; (b) societal democracy contributes to the attainment of workplace democracy; and (c) the elements of workplace democracy are identical to those of societal democracy. Third is the relationship between democratic concepts and human evolution. I believe that: (a) democratic concepts, including both our altruistic and selfish impulses, may have been essential elements in the evolutionary development of the human species; and (b) our use of self-consciousness and human agency to construct and refine these democratic concepts may be essential for our continued evolutionary development and the survival of our species.Based on these beliefs, I use Johnson's (1996) polarity management concept as the conceptual framework to construct the Polarity Management Model of Workplace Democracy. The model consists of ten paired elements: (a) freedom-authority; (b) justice-due process; (c) diversity-equality; (d) human rights-organizational obligations; and (e) participation-regeneration. I argue that: (a) none of these elements works well without its paired element; (b) all ten of these elements are essential for the attainment of workplace democracy; and (c) none is sufficient independent of the others. This thesis is theoretical, in that I conceptualize my model but stop short of undertaking an empirical test of the model.