Rediscovery of the Labour
                        Process

Smith, Chris; Anastasiadis, Stephanos

doi:10.4135/9781473915206.n12

Cited by 6 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 83 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…However, none of these investigations has empirically analysed how workers from different industries, employment sectors and class locations perceive the dynamics of control and domination taking place at the workplace itself. Thus, these investigations have left aside the study of how labour relations and the disputes for the control of the labour power associated with them are, as argued in labour process theory (Smith, 2015;Thompson and Smith, 2010), a central aspect of more general class relations. This article aims to do so by drawing upon central aspects of labour process theory (Smith, 2015).…”

Section: Service Economy Class Structure and The 'New Middle-class' mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, these investigations have left aside the study of how labour relations and the disputes for the control of the labour power associated with them are, as argued in labour process theory (Smith, 2015;Thompson and Smith, 2010), a central aspect of more general class relations. This article aims to do so by drawing upon central aspects of labour process theory (Smith, 2015). We argue that labour process theory's focus on workplace dynamics is a good supplement to the macro-level studies commonly emphasized in Marxist class analysis (Carter, 1995).…”

Section: Service Economy Class Structure and The 'New Middle-class' mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Following Marx's analysis, labour process theorists emphasize how the capitalist accumulation of profits implies, above all, the transformation of labour power into profitable work and, as a result thereof, into surplus value (Smith, 2015;Thompson and Smith, 2010). In claiming this, labour process theory also contends that given the structural opposition of interests between capitalists and workers, the generation of profits requires the exercise of some form of control over the labour force by capitalists and managers (Braverman, 1998(Braverman, [1974; Hyman, 1987).…”

Section: Service-sector Employment and 'Post-industrial' Labour Relatmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although recent investigations have called into question this idea (Gayo et al, 2016;Pérez Ahumada, 2018), the dialogue between them and labour process theory has barely existed. Consequently, in ignoring the study of how capitalists and managers seek to control the labour process to ensure the exploitation of the labour force and the accumulation process (Smith, 2015;Thompson and Smith, 2010), these investigations have not examined whether the 'manual' and 'non-manual' labour processes in Chile actually differ from each other.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This article aims to contribute to these debates by drawing upon the central elements of neo-Marxist class analysis (Wright, 1997) and labour process theory (Smith, 2015;Thompson and Smith, 2010). Through quantitative and qualitative evidence, the article shows that the most important conclusions derived from the thesis of the 'growing middle class' in Chile are misleading.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

The Service Industry, Private-sector Employment and Social Class in Chile: New Developments from Labour Process Theory

Pérez

Cifuentes

2019

Critical Sociology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For decades, analysts believed that the expansion of the service sector would lead to a ‘middle-class’ society. By the late 20th century, class analysts and labour process scholars called into question this argument. They showed that distinctions such as that between ‘white-collar’ and ‘blue-collar’ work failed to capture the dynamics of control and exploitation within production. Nevertheless, in Chile and other parts of Latin America, research still contends that the expansion of employment in private-sector service activities accelerated the consolidation of a ‘new middle class’. This article challenges this idea. Drawing upon insights from neo-Marxist class analysis and labour process theory, the article compares the perceptions of control over the labour process of workers from different industries, employment sectors and class locations. Quantitative and qualitative evidence suggest that the most important conclusions of recent research are misleading.

show abstract

Section: Service Economy Class Structure and The 'New Middle-class' mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Service Economy Class Structure and The 'New Middle-class' mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Service-sector Employment and 'Post-industrial' Labour Relatmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The Service Industry, Private-sector Employment and Social Class in Chile: New Developments from Labour Process Theory

Pérez

Cifuentes

2019

Critical Sociology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Platform Capitalism: Infrastructuring Migration, Mobility, and Racism

Animento

2024

Springer Studies in Alternative Economics

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Why does unpaid labour vary among digital labour platforms? Exploring socio-technical platform regimes of worker autonomy

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Digital platforms provide many workers with vital income and offer the promise of flexible work, and yet also contribute to experiences of precariousness and exploitation, particularly with regard to pressures to undertake unpaid work. This article explores why unpaid labour is necessary and what drives its extent and form among diverse types of digital platforms. We theorize two ideal types of ‘open’ and ‘closed’ socio-technical platform regimes of worker autonomy, building on sociological insights about socio-technical systems, management control over worker autonomy and labour market segmentation by skill. In principle, ‘open’ (‘closed’) platform regimes grant relatively high (low) worker autonomy in terms of access to the platform, paid work and control over work tasks. Analysing five case studies, illustrative of ‘open’ and ‘closed’ regimes, we investigate unpaid labour in low-skill locational (i.e. food delivery) platforms and medium/high-skill online (i.e. freelancing) platforms. In brief, digital freelancers exhibit a lower extent of unpaid labour within relatively ‘open’ regimes, owing to greater autonomy over access to, and control over, platform work in a sector requiring medium/high skills. Conversely, ‘closed’ regimes mitigate unpaid labour for food-delivery platforms by providing market shelter for workers, who are easily replaced in an overcrowded sector requiring few skills.

show abstract

Rediscovery of the Labour Process

Cited by 6 publications

References 83 publications

The Service Industry, Private-sector Employment and Social Class in Chile: New Developments from Labour Process Theory

The Service Industry, Private-sector Employment and Social Class in Chile: New Developments from Labour Process Theory

Platform Capitalism: Infrastructuring Migration, Mobility, and Racism

Why does unpaid labour vary among digital labour platforms? Exploring socio-technical platform regimes of worker autonomy

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About