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Provides a concise overview of how work is understood and defined, both as a concrete aspect of economic life, but also its social and political meanings.
Draws on theoretical and empirical contributions from a broad range of disciplines, from sociology to history, from economics to organizational studies.

This book provides a critical overview of the myriad literatures on "work," viewed not only as a product of the marketplace but also as a social and political construct. Drawing on theoretical and empirical contributions from sociology, history, economics, and organizational studies, the book brings together perspectives that too often remain balkanized, using each to explore the nature of work today. Outlining the fundamental principles that unite social science thinking about work, Vallas offers an original discussion of the major theoretical perspectives that inform workplace analysis, including Marxist, interactionist, feminist, and institutionalist schools of thought. Chapters are devoted to the labor process, to workplace flexibility, to gender and racial inequalities at work, and to the link between globalization and the structure of work and authority today. Major topics include the relation between work and identity; the relation between workplace culture and managerial control; and the performance of emotional labor within service occupations. This concise book will be invaluable to students at all levels as it explores a range of insights to make sense of pressing issues that drive the social scientific study of work today.

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List of Figures and Tables vii
 
1 Introduction 1
 
Approaching Work 3
 
Three Rules of Thumb 6
 
Schools of Thought in the Sociology of Work 19
 
Conclusion 34
 
2 Capitalism, Taylorism, and the Problem of Labor Control 37
 
Taylorism and the De-skilling Debate 38
 
Workplace Culture and Managerial Control 43
 
Workers as Subjects: Governing the Worker’s Soul 47
 
Conclusion 54
 
3 From Fordism to Flexibility? 60
 
The End of Fordism 62
 
Flexible Specialization 67
 
Scrutinizing Workplace Flexibility 72
 
4 Ascriptive Inequalities at Work, I: Gender 86
 
Studying Gender Inequality at Work 87
 
The Gendering of Work in the United States 89
 
Human Capitol Theory and Supply Side Approaches 96
 
Structural Approaches: The Demand side of the Equations 99
 
Social Networks: The Web of Affiliations 104
 
The Devaluation of Women’s Work 106
 
Conclusion 110
 
5 Ascriptive Inequalities, II: Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity at Work 113
 
The Continuing Significance of Race at Work 115
 
Social Closure Processes 119
 
Social Networks and Hiring Practices 121
 
Race-Typing and the Devaluation pf Black Labor 124
 
The Concept of Diversity: Reinforcing Inequality? 126
 
Conclusion 131
 
6 The Globalization of Work 133
 
Neo-liberalism: The Cult of the Marketplace 136
 
Globalization: The Debate 144
 
Regulating Global Capitalism: Solidarity Movements and Codes of Contact 156
 
Conclusion 161
 
7 Conclusion 163
 
Notes 170
 
References 173
 
Index 195

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