- Title
- Working 24/7: the new work ethic
- Creator
- Germov, John
- Relation
- Public Sociology: An Introduction to Australian Society p. 421-445
- Relation
- https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/other-books/Public-Sociology-Edited-by-John-Germov-and-Marilyn-Poole-9781743315873
- Publisher
- Allen & Unwin
- Resource Type
- book chapter
- Date
- 2015
- Description
- What is considered work, attitudes and motivations towards work, and the ways in which work is experienced are inherently outcomes of social organisation. Economic and technological developments, along with cultural values, public policies, and wider social structures, all set the social context of work. This chapter introduces you to a brief history of work, outlining continuities and changes. It discusses the notion of the 'work ethic' (what motivates us to work) and whether this is changing, given the rise of consumerism and the 24/7 economy. With unsocial work hours, casualisation, and under-employment now increasingly common, this chapter explores whether the contemporary work ethic is primarily governed by consumption preferences. In addition, the chapter covers debates over the persistence of gendered forms of work and the implications of this for an improved work/life balance for both women and men. The chapter then discusses dominant conceptions of work organisation, examining the ideas of Max Weber, Frederick Winslow Taylor, Henry Ford, and Elton Mayo, before reviewing contemporary theories that suggest we now live in a post-industrial or network society.
- Description
- 3rd
- Subject
- capitalism; mercantilism; social construction/ism; emotional labour; alienation; consumerism; sexual division of labour; patriarchal dividend
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1301555
- Identifier
- uon:20315
- Identifier
- ISBN:9781743315873
- Language
- eng
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