The state and class discipline: European labour market policy after the financial crisis

Umney, Charles; Greer, Ian; Onaran, Özlem; Symon, Graham

doi:10.1177/0309816817738318

Cited by 20 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 81 publications

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“…A number of the case studies highlighted in this paper suggest there may be limits to employer and state adherence to the sustained deregulation of employment relations' characteristic of the post-Thatcher period. Arguments based upon the financialisation or short-termism of the UK economy indicate that such commitment is resistant to a concept of the long-term management of capitalist economies (Umney, Greer, Onaran and Symon, 2018) and does not stabilise capital accumulation in the long run. This may particularly be the case where flexible labour markets mean fragmented bargaining, contractual differentiation and the loss of skill and experience (Crouch, 2015), along with unintended consequences in terms of internal equity.…”

Section: The Wage Share and Collective Bargainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The resilience of collective bargaining – a renewed logic for joint regulation?

Moore

Onaran

Guschanski

et al. 2019

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Purpose-This paper has two objectives, firstly to reassert the persistent association of the decline in collective bargaining with the increase in income inequality, the fall in the share of wages in national income and deterioration in macroeconomic performance in the UK. Secondly the paper presents case studies affirming concrete outcomes of organisational collective bargaining for workers, in terms of pay, job quality, working hours and work-life balance. Design/methodology/approach-The paper is based upon two methodological approaches. Firstly, econometric analyses using industry and firm-level data for advanced and emerging economies testing the relationship between declining union density, collective bargaining coverage and the fall in the share of wages in national income. Secondly it reports on 10 in-depth case studies of collective bargaining each based upon analysis of collective bargaining agreements plus in-depth interviews with the actors party to them: in total 16 trade union officers, 16 members and 11 employer representatives. Findings-There is robust evidence of the effects of different measures of union bargaining power on the labour share of national income. Collective bargaining coverage is a precondition for the effectiveness of unions from the perspective of income distribution. The case studies appear to address a legacy of deregulated industrial relations. A number demonstrate the reinvigoration of collective bargaining at organisational and sectoral level, addressing the two-tier workforce and contractual differentiation, alongside the consequences of government pay policies for equality. Research limitations/implications-The case studies represent a purposive sample and therefore findings are not generalisable; researchers are encouraged to test the suggested propositions further. Practical implications-The paper proposes that tackling income inequality requires a restructuring of the institutional framework in which bargaining takes place and a level playing field where the bargaining power of labour is more in balance with that of capital. Collective bargaining addresses a number of the issues raised by the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices as essential for 'good work' yet is at odds with the review's assumptions and remedies. The case studies reiterate the importance of strong workplace representation, and bargaining at workplace level, that advocates for non-members and provides a basis for union recruitment, organisation and wider employee engagement. Originality/value-The paper indicates that there may be limits to employer commitment to deregulated employment relations. The emergence of new or reinvigorated collective agreements may represent a concession by employers that a 'free', individualised, deinstitutionalised, precarious approach to industrial relations, based on wage suppression and work intensification is not in their interests in the long run.

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Section: The Wage Share and Collective Bargainingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The resilience of collective bargaining – a renewed logic for joint regulation?

Moore

Onaran

Guschanski

et al. 2019

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The 2008 financial crisis provides a further example of the Labour Party’s betrayal of the working class (Winlow & Hall 2017). The party failed to offer a renewed socioeconomic project; broadly agreed with the political Right about the provision of publicly funded loans to banks alongside public sector austerity as solutions to the crash; including wage restraints and punitive policies that have served to discipline the labour force (see Umney et al 2017). Historically, austerity has failed to deliver on its promise of economic growth and recovery (see Blyth 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brexit and the working class on Teesside: Moving beyond reductionism

Telford

Wistow

2019

Capital & Class

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Too often, members of the working class who voted to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum have been framed as uneducated and unaware of their own economic interests. This article, based on 26 in-depth face-to-face interviews and a further telephone interview on Teesside in the North East of England, offers an alternative perspective that is more nuanced and less reductionist. The article critiques some of the commonly heard tropes regarding the rationale for voting leave, it then exposes how leave voters rooted their decision in a localised experience of neoliberalism’s slow-motion social dislocation linked to the deindustrialisation of the area and the failure of political parties, particularly the Labour Party, to speak for regional or working-class interests.

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“…However, a concern is that some citizens disapprove of the activity plans, considering them disciplinary and punitive rather than beneficial and humanitarian. Citizens may feel pressured to enter a labor market for which they feel unprepared (Umney et al, 2018). Thus, in some respects, this new management model lacks the acceptance it seeks.…”

Section: Digital Discretion In the Application Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Discretion: Unpacking Human and Technological Agency in Automated Decision Making in Sweden’s Social Services

Ranerup

Henriksen

2020

Social Science Computer Review

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The introduction of robotic process automation (RPA) into the public sector has changed civil servants’ daily life and practices. One of these central practices in the public sector is discretion. The shift to a digital mode of discretion calls for an understanding of the new situation. This article presents an empirical case where automated decision making driven by RPA has been implemented in social services in Sweden. It focuses on the aspirational values and effects of the RPA in social services. Context, task, and activities are captured by a detailed analysis of humans and technology. This research finds that digitalization in social services has a positive effect on civil servants’ discretionary practices mainly in terms of their ethical, democratic, and professional values. The long-term effects and the influence on fair and uniform decision making also merit future research. In addition, the article finds that a human–technology hybrid actor redefines social assistance practices. Simplifications are needed to unpack the automated decision-making process because of the technological and theoretical complexities.

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The state and class discipline: European labour market policy after the financial crisis

Cited by 20 publications

References 81 publications

The resilience of collective bargaining – a renewed logic for joint regulation?

The resilience of collective bargaining – a renewed logic for joint regulation?

Brexit and the working class on Teesside: Moving beyond reductionism

Digital Discretion: Unpacking Human and Technological Agency in Automated Decision Making in Sweden’s Social Services

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