Employment Relationships
New Models of White-Collar Work

The second half of the twentieth century witnessed a quite dramatic shift in the nature of white collar employment, from lifetime tenure, often in a very hierarchical work structure, to a new model defined by flatter organizations, job insecurity, shorter tenures, declining attachment between employer and employee, and contingent work. Managing employment relations has become an issue of huge strategic importance as businesses struggle to respond to the pace of change in management systems and working practices. Employment Relationships: New Models of White-Collar Work traces developments in employment arrangements drawn from a number of business contexts. These include the rising role of outside hiring and lateral moves in shaping and managing careers, increased career uncertainty, and much greater variety in organizational structures - even within industries and professions - as employers struggle to meet the diverging demands of their product markets.

Reviews & endorsements

'In Employment Relationships, Peter Cappelli and his colleagues examine the changes in employment relations that have accompanied the withering away of the model represented by the 'Organization Man'. The chapters help to identify the variety and commonalities of new models of employment relations and white-collar careers by addressing topics such as separations and promotions in manufacturing and financial organizations, call centers, triadic employment relations, and careers of lawyers and physicians. This book is a valuable addition to our understanding of the emergent employment relations in white-collar occupations.' Arne L. Kalleberg, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and President of the American Sociological Association, 2007–8

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Product details

• Date Published: March 2008
• format: Paperback
• isbn: 9780521684088
• length: 276 pages

• dimensions: 230 x 150 x 15 mm
• weight: 0.45kg
• contains: 12 tables
• availability: Available