Bravemans Deskilling Theory Flashcards
What is scientific management
Management of workers should follow scientific principles-strict control of workforce and performance of tasks in same way as a piece of machinery
What did scientific management make workers become
Extensions of ye machinery they were operating
Who first used taylorism
Ford
How does the way ford applied taylorism benefit the company
As the car could be released extremely cheap at around half the price of cars at that time as they could still profit off of this as the workers are low paid due to the repetitive and low skilled jobs
What did workers lack in fordism?
Skills,knowledge of the production process and control over the speed of work,and were completely removed from decision making
What will happen if workers are only performing small and specific tasks in the process of the whole product
They will have low work satisfaction and are more likely to quit as they will have high work satisfaction if they’d we the final product instead if performing teh same repetitive and un meaningful tasks
What is the theory of efficiency in mcdonaldisation
Every aspect of the labour process is carefully evaluated so that the production process is as streamlined as possible,and is carried out uniformly (in one way)
What is the theory of calculability in mcdonaldisation
Each item in the production process is carefully calculated and quantified
What is the theory of predictability in mcdonaldisation
The products,the way the staff treat and talk to customers,and the environment are stable,consistent and predictable,and can be duplicated in all branches across the world
What theory is the labour process manifested through
Taylorism/fordism
What was mcdonaldisationlater known as
The deskilling thesis
What sociological theory does braverman believe in
Marxist
Managers cannot trust workers, to work efficiently,so what is it what they minimise the workers control of
They minimise the autonomy of the workers
What does braverman criticise
The organisation of work under capitalism for reflecting conflict between the owners of the means of production and the exploited non-owning working class
What principles is the work force controlled by
The application of scientific management principles
What do scientific management principles lead to
Deskilling and degradation of work
What does braverman argues happens in contemporary capitalism
An increasing proportion of jobs in many different sectors are becoming more and more degraded in terms of skill
Why are jobs being degraded in terms of skill
Tasks in the labour process are subdivided into simpler parts with a resultant loss of creative capacity and control over the labour process by workers
With the growth of digitsk technology what has de skilling extended to
It has extended to even highly skilled,knowledge -based middle class careers
What have Frey and Osbourne predicted
Computerisation could make nearly half of these jobs redundant within ten to twenty years
What is upskilling
There has been a decline in semi- and unskilled work and in increase in skilled work.
What did gallie find little evidence to support?
The deskilling thesis,with many workers saying their work has been upskilled with more qualifications needed and more training necessary
What do other Marxists argue deskillinh is a means of
Controlling the labour process and workforce among a variety of methods
What does braverman say
5he workforce is controlled through the application of scientific management principles,leading to what he calls the de skilling and degradation of work
An increasing proportion of jobs are becoming more and more degraded in terms of skill
What are Akka the principles of a fast food restaurant
Efficiency,calculability,predictability,control
What is direct control
Workers given wider degree of discretion /control and is controlled direct by supervisors,is mainly self policing
What is technical control
Workers controlled by hierarchy of authority every worker has an immediate superior and has formal rules controlling their job
What is beurocratic control
Majority of job is controlled by machinery with workers having small,Simple tasks
What is responsible autonomy
Clear supervision of workforce by owners,typically found in small businesses and is not common in large companies
What is my evidence and evaluation for par2
H
Who identified 4 types of control
Abercrombie
elton mayo
human relations theory and control of labour process
Developed by Elton mayo in the 20s
•Mayo led a team of researchers in the Hawthorne plant in Chicago, in an attempt
tad then produe
to find factors affecting productivity of workers
• He found that workers were more productive if they felt valued, less controlled by management, and enjoyed their work
Work was made more rewarding though:
• Job enrichment: giving workers more independence and responsibility for decision-making in their work, and the way they organise it, plus the chance to use their initiative, rather than being closely supervised.
• Job rotation: giving workers a wider variety of jobs to do.
• Job enlargement: including a wider range of tasks and skills within a job.
• Teamwork: where a team is responsible for completing a product, rather than individuals having responsibility for a single, boring task.
Friedman
Responsible autonomy
Friedman (1977), although writing from a Marxist perspective like Braverman, is critical of Braverman’s deskilling thesis and his idea that the workforce is controlled through
technology.
Friedman argues that employers can achieve more effective control of the labour process and higher levels of efficiency by involving workers more in their work, rather than by direct control through the application of scientific management approaches. He suggests workers will identify more with a company and their work, and require less direct supervision and control, if management gives them some responsible autonomy, allowing them to use their own initiative in organising their work, with a limited degree of control in the labour process.
Piore and Sabel
ty argue that Fordist modes of production are increasingly outdated. While assembly-production and the application of Taylor’s scientific management principles or onaldisafion are effective for producing a very limited range of relatively cheap ucis on a mass scale, consumers have become more demanding, and want more inalised, or customised, specialised and high-quality goods. therefore, now use computer technology and more skilled workers to make uchion more flexible - Piore and Sabel (1984) refer to this as flexible specialisation.
