Employment is a
contractA contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
between two
partiesA party is a person or group of persons that compose a single entity which can be identified as one for the purposes of the law. Parties include: plaintiff , defendant , petitioner , respondent , cross-complainant A party is a person or group of persons that compose a single entity which can be...
, one being the
employer and the other being the
employee. An
employee may be defined as:
- "A person in the service of another under any contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
of hireHire may refer to:*Employment*Rental*Payment for the use of a ship under a time charterHIRE may refer to*Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act, a United States law enacted in 2010...
, express or implied, oralAn oral contract is a contract the terms of which have been agreed by spoken communication, in contrast to a written contract, where the contract is a written document...
or written, where the employer has the power or rightRights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people, according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory...
to control and directManagement in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
the employee in the material detailMateriality is a legal term which can have different meanings, depending on context. When speaking of facts, the term generally means a fact which is "significant to the issue or matter at hand".-In the law of evidence:...
s of how the work is to be performedWage labour is the socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer, where the worker sells their labour under a formal or informal employment contract. These transactions usually occur in a labour market where wages are market determined...
."
- Black's Law Dictionary
Black's Law Dictionary is the most widely used law dictionary in the United States. It was founded by Henry Campbell Black. It is the reference of choice for definitions in legal briefs and court opinions and has been cited as a secondary legal authority in many U.S...
page 471 (5th ed. 1979).
Employee
An employee contributes labor and expertise to an endeavor of an employer and is usually hired to perform specific duties which are packaged into a
jobA job is a regular activity performed in exchange for payment. A person usually begins a job by becoming an employee, volunteering, or starting a business. The duration of a job may range from an hour to a lifetime . If a person is trained for a certain type of job, they may have a profession...
. In most modern economies, the term "employee" refers to a specific defined relationship between an individual and a corporation, which differs from those of
customerA customer is usually used to refer to a current or potential buyer or user of the products of an individual or organization, called the supplier, seller, or vendor. This is typically through purchasing or renting goods or services...
or
clientConsumer is a broad label for any individuals or households that use goods generated within the economy. The concept of a consumer occurs in different contexts, so that the usage and significance of the term may vary.-Economics and marketing:...
.
Other types of employment are arrangements such as
indenturingIndentured servitude refers to the historical practice of contracting to work for a fixed period of time, typically three to seven years, in exchange for transportation, food, clothing, lodging and other necessities during the term of indenture. Usually the father made the arrangements and signed...
which is now highly unusual in developed nations but still happens elsewhere.
The employer-worker relationship
An employer's level of power over its workers is dependent upon numerous factors, the most influential being the nature of the contractual relationship between the two. This relationship is affected by three significant factors: interests, control and motivation. It is generally considered the employers' responsibility to manage and balance these factors in a way that enables a harmonious and productive working relationship.
Employer and managerial control within an organization rests at many levels and has important implications for staff and productivity alike, with control forming the fundamental link between desired outcomes and actual processes. Employers must balance interests such as decreasing wage constraints with a maximization of labour productivity in order to achieve a profitable and productive employment relationship.
Finding employees or employment
The main ways for employers to find workers and for people to find employers are via jobs listings in newspapers and online, also called job boards. Employers and job seekers also often find each other via professional recruitment consultants which receive a
commissionCommission may refer to:* Commission , a form of payment to an agent for services rendered* Commission , a document given to commissioned officers....
from the employer to find, screen and select suitable candidates.
Workforce organizing
Employees can organize into
tradeA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
or labor unions, which represent the work force to collectively bargain with the management of organisations about working and contractual conditions.
Ending employment
Usually, either an employee or employer may end the relationship at any time. This is called as
at-will employmentAt-will employment is a doctrine of American law that defines anemployment relationship in which either party can break the relationship with no liability, provided there was no express contract for a definite term governing the employment relationship and that the employer does not belong to a...
. The contract between the two parties specifies the responsibilities of each when ending the relationship and may include requirements such as notice periods, severance pay, and security measures.
Australia
In
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
there is the controversial
Australian Workplace AgreementAustralian workplace agreements were formalized individual agreements negotiated by the boss and employee. Employers could offer "take it or leave it" AWAs as a condition of employment. They were registered by the employment advocate and did not require a dispute resolution procedure. These...
. In March 2008 a bill was passed in the Austons for workers to be transferred from AWAs into intermediate agreements
Canada
In the
CanadianCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
provinceThe provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
of
OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, formal complaints can be brought to the
Ministry of Labour (Ontario)The Ministry of Labour is responsible for labour issues in the Canadian province of Ontario.The Ministry of Labour and its agencies are responsible for employment equity and rights, occupational health and safety, and labour relations....
. In the province of
QuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, grievances can be filed with the
Commission des normes du travail.
Pakistan
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
has Contract Labour, Minimum Wage and Provident Funds Acts. Contract labour in Pakistan must be paid minimum wage and certain facilities are to be provided to labour. However, a lot of work has yet to be done to fully implement the Acts.
India
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
has Contract Labour, Minimum Wage and Provident Funds Acts. Contract labour in India must be paid minimum wage and certain facilities are to be provided to labour. However, a lot of work has yet to be done to fully implement the Act.
Philippines
In the
PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, private employment is regulated under the
Labor Code of the PhilippinesThe Labor Code of the Philippines stands as the law governing employment practices and labor relations in the Philippines. It was enacted on Labor day of 1974 by President Ferdinand Marcos, in the exercise of his then extant legislative powers.-Features:...
by the
Department of Labor and EmploymentThe Philippines' Department of Labor and Employment is the executive department of the Philippine Government mandated to formulate policies, implement programs and services, and serve as the policy-coordinating arm of the Executive Branch in the field of labor and employment...
.
United States
In the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the standard employment relationship is considered to be at-will, meaning that the employer and employee are both free to terminate the employment at any time and for any cause, or for no cause at all. However, if a
termination of employment-Involuntary termination:Involuntary termination is the employee's departure at the hands of the employer. There are two basic types of involuntary termination, known often as being "fired" and "laid off." To be fired, as opposed to being laid off, is generally thought of to be the employee's...
by the employer is deemed
unjustEthics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
by the employee, there can be legal recourse to challenge such a termination. Unjust termination may include termination due to
discriminationDiscrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
because of an individual's race, national origin, sex or gender, pregnancy, age, physical or mental disability, religion, or military status. Additional protections apply in some states, for instance in California unjust termination reasons include marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation or medical condition. Despite whatever agreement an employer makes with an employee for the employee's wages, an employee is entitled to certain minimum wages set by the
federal governmentThe federal government is the common government of a federation. The structure of federal governments varies from institution to institution. Based on a broad definition of a basic federal political system, there are two or more levels of government that exist within an established territory and...
. The states may set their own minimum wage that is higher than the federal government's to ensure a higher
standard of livingStandard of living is generally measured by standards such as real income per person and poverty rate. Other measures such as access and quality of health care, income growth inequality and educational standards are also used. Examples are access to certain goods , or measures of health such as...
or
living wageIn public policy, a living wage is the minimum hourly income necessary for a worker to meet basic needs . These needs include shelter and other incidentals such as clothing and nutrition...
for their residents. Under the
Equal Pay Act of 1963The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is a United States federal law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex . It was signed into law on June 10, 1963 by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program...
an employer may not give different wages based on sex alone.
Employees are often contrasted with independent contractors, especially when there is dispute as to the worker's entitlement to have matching taxes paid, workers compensation, and unemployment insurance benefits. However, in September 2009, the court case of
Brown v. J. Kaz, Inc. ruled that independent contractors are regarded as employees for the purpose of
discrimination lawsThe Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation in the United States that outlawed major forms of discrimination against African Americans and women, including racial segregation...
if they work for the employer on a regular basis, and said employer directs the time, place, and manner of employment.
In non-union work environments, in the United States, unjust termination complaints can be brought to the
United States Department of LaborThe United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The...
.
Trade Unions in the United States:
In
unionizedA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
work environments in particular, employees who are receiving
disciplineIn its original sense, discipline is referred to systematic instruction given to disciples to train them as students in a craft or trade, or to follow a particular code of conduct or "order". Often, the phrase "to discipline" carries a negative connotation. This is because enforcement of order –...
, up to and including termination of employment can ask for assistance by their
shop stewardA union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company, who represents and defends the interests of her/his fellow employees but who is also a labor union official...
to advocate on behalf of the employee. If an informal
negotiationNegotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties, intended to reach an understanding, resolve point of difference, or gain advantage in outcome of dialogue, to produce an agreement upon courses of action, to bargain for individual or collective advantage, to craft outcomes to satisfy...
between the shop steward and the company does not resolve the issue, the shop steward may file a
grievanceA grievance is a wrong or hardship suffered, which is the grounds of a complaint.-History and politics:A grievance may arise from injustice or tyranny, and be cause for rebellion or revolution....
, which can result in a resolution within the company, or
mediationMediation, as used in law, is a form of alternative dispute resolution , a way of resolving disputes between two or more parties. A third party, the mediator, assists the parties to negotiate their own settlement...
or
arbitrationArbitration, a form of alternative dispute resolution , is a legal technique for the resolution of disputes outside the courts, where the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons , by whose decision they agree to be bound...
, which are typically funded equally both by the union and the company.
In the US, employment law and, in particular, unionized employees terminating employment varies among companies, unions, and states. Some states have right to work vs. employment at will and therefore, ending employment can change from state to state. Secondly, different companies have different rules and processes for ending employment. In certain companies and industries they take the 3-step process: written warning, second written, final written and then termination. In addition, different unions have different steps for ending employment. Something that doesn't change is the stewards and unions protecting their employees with regards to violations of policies. In most all cases, union and stewards will protect their employees even if they feel the employee violated the policy ending to termination.
Sweden
According to Swedish law, there are three types of employment.
- Test employment (swe: Provanställning), where the employer hires a person for a test period of max 6 months. The employment can be ended at any time without giving any reason. This type of employment can be offered only once per employer and employee. Usually a time limited or normal employment is offered after a test employment.
- Time limited employment (swe: Tidsbegränsad anställning). The employer hires a person for a specified time. Usually they are extended for a new period. Total maximum two years per employee per employer and employee, then it automatically counts as a normal employment.
- Normal employment (swe: Tillsvidareanställning / Fast anställning), which has no time limit (except for retirement etc.). It can still be ended for two reasons: personal reason, only strong reasons such as crime. Or: lack of work tasks (swe: Arbetsbrist), cancellation of employment, usually because of bad income for the company. There is a cancellation period of 1-6 months, and rules for how to select employees, basically those with shortest employment time shall be cancelled first.
There are no laws about minimum salary in Sweden. Instead there are agreements between employer organisations and trade unions about minimum salaries, and other employment conditions.
Working Poor
Employment is no guarantee of escaping
povertyPoverty is the lack of a certain amount of material possessions or money. Absolute poverty or destitution is inability to afford basic human needs, which commonly includes clean and fresh water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter. About 1.7 billion people are estimated to live...
, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that as many as 40% of workers as poor, not earning enough to keep their families above the $2 a day poverty line. For instance, in
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
most of the chronically poor are wage earners in formal employment, because their jobs are insecure and low paid and offer no chance to accumulate wealth to avoid risks. This problems appears to be caused by the decreasing likelihood of a simultaneous growth in employment opportunities and in labour productivity. According to the UNRISD, increasing labour productivity appears to have a negative impact on job creation: in the 1960s, a 1% increase in output per worker was associated with a reduction in employment growth of 0.07%, by the first decade of this century the same productivity increase implies reduced employment growth by 0.54%. Both increased employment opportunities and increased labour productivity (as long as it also translates into higher wages) are needed to tackle poverty. Increases in employment without increases in productivity leads to a rise in the number of "working poor", which is why some experts are now promoting the creation of "quality" and not "quantity" in labour market policies. This approach does highlight how higher productivity has helped reduce poverty in
East AsiaEast Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
, but the negative impact is beginning to show. In Viet Nam, for example, employment growth has slowed while productivity growth has continued. Furthermore, productivity increases do not always lead to increased wages, as can be seen in the US, where the gap between productivity and wages has been rising since the 1980s.
Researchers at the
Overseas Development InstituteThe Overseas Development Institute is one of the leading independent think tanks on international development and humanitarian issues. Based in London, its mission is "to inspire and inform policy and practice which lead to the reduction of poverty, the alleviation of suffering and the achievement...
argue that there are differences across economic sectors in creating employment that reduces poverty. 24 instances of growth were examined, in which 18 reduced poverty. This study showed that other sectors were just as important in reducing unemployment, as
manufacturingManufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
. The services sector is most effective at translating productivity growth into employment growth.
AgricultureAgriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
provides a safety net for jobs and economic buffer when other sectors are struggling.
| Growth, employment and poverty |
| |
Number of episodes |
Rising agricultural employment |
Rising industrial employment |
Rising services employment |
| Growth episodes associated with falling poverty rates |
18 |
6 |
10 |
15 |
| Growth episodes associated with no fall in poverty rates |
6 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
Culture and social considerations
Ideological shifts in demographic eras:
The Depression era
The Depression placed great emphasis on work when it was so scarce that to not work literally meant to starve. Families were separated as men went looking for work wherever it could be found, whatever it was, no matter how menial. Life expectancy in the 1930s was also not as long as the current (2008) expectancies, so the option for a family to "move back in with parents" wasn't worthwhile, as parents either weren't alive, or didn't have the investment environment to have had a "nest egg" to depend on.
World War II
World War II dramatically flipped the supply and demand of both work and labour. Manufacturing of war supplies created plenty of work, but the absence of men due to recruitment opened the floodgates for labour demand that would be met by women and those who could not enlist and fight.
Post World War II
In the post-World War II period, the workplace had changed as women who had reported for work during the war to replace the men who had gone overseas to fight remained in the workplace to a significant extent. While the demand for manufacturing wasn't as high once the war ended, the new optimism and new social phenomena including urban sprawl created new demands for supply that would create new jobs in road-building, real estate development, etc. Work remained high in social value.
Babyboom competition
As the baby boomers started working in the 1970s, the oil crisis and economic lag slowed their engagement in consumerism. As the 1980s dawned, the largest generation were now in their peak employment years, peaking in terms of income, and were now fully engaged in buying, whether homes, vehicles, or investments for the future.
The sheer number of people in the workforce during this period created heightened competition for work, so that businesses and government bodies could be increasingly selective and demanding, and workers would do more and more to get and keep jobs. As such, commitment to work became sacrificial, as having a good job and the social status it provided became all-consuming for many. This was the era marked most significantly by the standard introduction of "what do you do?"
Baby bust and echo
The baby bust generation, or
Generation XGeneration X, commonly abbreviated to Gen X, is the generation born after the Western post–World War II baby boom ended. While there is no universally agreed upon time frame, the term generally includes people born from the early 1960's through the early 1980's, usually no later than 1981 or...
, is the smallest of the last 50 years. As baby boomers retire, there are not as many workers to replace them, so employers have had to become more accommodating to attract the best employees. Terms like "work life balance", "telecommuting", "working from home" and "flexible benefits" have been developed to offer more attractive options for a generation that has more choice.
Models of the employment relationship
Scholars conceptualize the employment relationship in various ways. A key assumption is the extent to which the employment relationship necessarily includes conflicts of interests between employers and employees, and the form of such conflicts. In economic theorizing, the labour market mediates all such conflicts such that employers and employees who enter into an employment relationship are assumed to find this arrangement in their own self-interest. In human resource management theorizing, employers and employees are assumed to have shared interests (or a unity of interests, hence the label “unitarism”). Any conflicts that exist are seen as a manifestation of poor human resource management policies or interpersonal clashes such as personality conflicts, both of which can and should be managed away. From the perspective of pluralist industrial relations, the employment relationship is characterized by a plurality of stakeholders with legitimate interests (hence the label “pluralism), and some conflicts of interests are seen as inherent in the employment relationship (e.g., wages v. profits). Lastly, the critical paradigm emphasizes antagonistic conflicts of interests between various groups (e.g., the competing capitalist and working classes in a Marxist framework) that are part of a deeper social conflict of unequal power relations. As a result, there are four common models of employment:
- Mainstream economics: employment is seen as a mutually advantageous transaction in a free market between self-interested legal and economic equals
- Human resource management
Human Resource Management is the management of an organization's employees. While human resource management is sometimes referred to as a "soft" management skill, effective practice within an organization requires a strategic focus to ensure that people resources can facilitate the achievement of...
(unitarism): employment is a long-term partnership of employees and employers with common interests
- Pluralist industrial relations: employment is a bargained exchange between stakeholders with some common and some competing economic interests and unequal bargaining power due to imperfect labor markets
- Critical industrial relations: employment is an unequal power relation between competing groups that is embedded in and inseparable from systemic inequalities throughout the socio-politico-economic system.
These models are important because they help reveal why individuals hold differing perspectives on human resource management policies, labor unions, and employment regulation. For example, human resource management policies are seen as dictated by the market in the first view, as essential mechanisms for aligning the interests of employees and employers and thereby creating profitable companies in the second view, as insufficient for looking out for workers’ interests in the third view, and as manipulative managerial tools for shaping the ideology and structure of the workplace in the fourth view.
Work as an economic component
CapitalismCapitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
demarcates "work" as something that is supplied by "owners" and demanded by "non-owners" to a great degree. "Owners" in this context are the employers, which are rewarded for the risk they take in owning and operating a business with keeping most of the profits. Some see this as unfair as most of the day-to-day work of a business is performed by people who receive less of the profits. This idea contributed to the establishment of trade unions, although unsafe work conditions also played a major part.
Unionism
The purpose of a union is the formulation of a written contract between the employer and the employee, specifying the rights and duties of each.
Prior to the existence of unions, very few labor contracts existed, allowing the employer to re-define the job any time, occasionally to the detriment of the employee.
In the purest sense, a union leverages the collective strength of a group of workers to force owners and management to increase their compensation.
Opponents of capitalism, such as
MarxistMarxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
s oppose the capitalist employment system, considering it to be unfair that the people who contribute the majority of work to an organization, regardless of their level of financial risk, do not receive a proportionate share of the profit and that full employment is rarely reached under capitalism.
Other "isms"
Marxist communism reorders the hierarchy to suggest that all citizens of a society, regardless of individual differences, are equal owners and are thus entitled to equal share of the wealth of the society.
Value of labor
The value of work is also informed by the economic system in which it functions.
Capitalism allows the marketplace to determine the value of a good or service based on demand, rather than impose a value on a good or service. In a communist environment, the state determines the value a job may have, and may also open or close avenues to those jobs, creating less of a sense of freedom as to who may occupy those jobs.
Socio-psychological concepts of freedom, self-actualization, motivation and aspiration are thus tested in a society where a person is not taught the value of contributing to enterprise. The capitalist system suggests that success is unlimited or directly proportional to how much an individual wants to work at it, while opponents of communism suggest that imposing value takes away the motivation for someone to be better at their job than the next guy who isn't working as hard but the value in what they do is fixed regardless of performance.
While different countries subscribe to and build their societies on different approaches, clearly "work" plays a great role in the definition of a society and its culture.
The
SurrealistsSurrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
and the Situationists were among the few groups to actually oppose work, and during the partially surrealist-influenced events of May 1968 the walls of the
SorbonneThe University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
were covered with anti-work graffiti.
Bob BlackBob Black is an American anarchist. He is the author of The Abolition of Work and Other Essays, Beneath the Underground, Friendly Fire, Anarchy After Leftism, and numerous political essays.-Writing:Some of his work from the early 1980s includes...
is an anarchist author who is well known for exploring the ideas of opposition to work in the essay
The Abolition of Work"The Abolition of Work" is an essay written by Bob Black in 1985. The essay was part of Black's first book, an anthology of essays entitled The Abolition of Work and Other Essays published by Loompanics Unlimited. It is an exposition of Black's "type 3 anarchism" – a blend of post-Situationist...
, published in 1985.
Workplace democracy
A developing model of employment, as practiced by such companies as Semco,
GoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
,
DaVitaDaVita, Inc. is one of the largest kidney care companies in the United States, with corporate headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Their offerings include in-center hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, home hemodialysis, vascular access management, chronic kidney disease education, and renal diet...
, Freys Hotels and Linden Labs, seeks to set aside the "master-servant relationship" implicit in the traditional employment contract. The concommitant employment practices are often grouped under the heading
workplace democracyWorkplace democracy is the application of democracy in all its forms to the workplace....
, and are characterized by high levels of
employee engagementEmployee engagement, also called worker engagement, is a business management concept. An "engaged employee" is one who is fully involved in, and enthusiastic about their work, and thus will act in a way that furthers their organization's interests...
, principles-based rather than rules-based work relations, and a problem-solving approach to workplace conflict. In this model,
managementManagement in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively...
becomes a domain shared between managers and staff. The resurgent
New UnionismNew Unionism is a term which has been used twice in the history of the labour movement, both times involving moves to broaden the trade union agenda.-1880s:First was the development within the British trade union movement in the late 1880s...
movement promotes this employment model, and seeks to extend it.
Self-employment
When an individual entirely owns the business for which he or she labours, this is known as
self-employmentSelf-employment is working for one's self.Self-employed people can also be referred to as a person who works for himself/herself instead of an employer, but drawing income from a trade or business that they operate personally....
. Self-employment often leads to
incorporationIncorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
. Incorporation offers certain protections of one's personal assets. Laws of incorporation vary from state to state with Delaware having the most incorporated businesses of any state in the U.S.
Volunteerism
Workers who are not paid wages, such as volunteers, are generally not considered as being employed. One exception to this is an internship, an employment situation in which the worker receives training or experience (and possibly college credit) as the chief form of compensation.
Indenturing and slavery
Those who work under obligation for the purpose of fulfilling a debt, such as an
indentured servantIndentured servitude refers to the historical practice of contracting to work for a fixed period of time, typically three to seven years, in exchange for transportation, food, clothing, lodging and other necessities during the term of indenture. Usually the father made the arrangements and signed...
, or as property of the person or entity they work for, such as a
slaveSlavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
, do not receive pay for their services and are not considered employed. Some historians suggest that slavery is older than employment, but both arrangements have existed for all recorded history.
Globalization and employment relations
The balance of economic efficiency and social equity is the ultimate debate in the field of employment relations. By meeting the needs of the employer; generating profits to establish and maintain economic efficiency; whilst maintaining a balance with the employee and creating social equity that benefits the worker so that he/she can fund and enjoy healthy living; proves to be a continuous revolving issue in westernized societies.
Globalization has effected these issues by creating certain economic factors that disallow or allow various employment issues. Economist Edward Lee (1996) studies the effects of globalization and summarizes the four major points of concern that affect employment relations:
- International competition, from the newly industrialized countries
The category of newly industrialized country is a socioeconomic classification applied to several countries around the world by political scientists and economists....
, will cause unemployment growth and increased wage disparity for unskilled workers in industrialized countries. Imports from low-wage countries exert pressure on the manufacturing sector in industrialized countries and foreign direct investment (FDI) is attracted away from the industrialized nations, towards low-waged countries.
- Economic liberalization will result in unemployment and wage inequality in developing countries. This happens as job losses in un-competitive industries outstrip job opportunities in new industries.
- Workers will be forced to accept worsening wages and conditions, as a global labour market results in a “race to the bottom”. Increased international competition creates a pressure to reduce the wages and conditions of workers.
- Globalization reduces the autonomy of the nation state. Capital is increasingly mobile and the ability of the state to regulate economic activity is reduced.
What also results from Lee’s (1996) findings is that in industrialized countries an average of almost 70 per cent of workers are employed in the service sector, most of which consists of non-tradable activities. As a result, workers are forced to become more skilled and develop sought after trades, or find other means of survival. Ultimately this is a result of changes and trends of employment, an evolving workforce, and globalization that is represented by a more skilled and increasing highly diverse labour force, that are growing in non standard forms of employment (Markey, R. et al. 2006).
See also
- Basic income
A basic income guarantee is a proposed system of social security, that regularly provides each citizen with a sum of money. In contrast to income redistribution between nations themselves, the phrase basic income defines payments to individuals rather than households, groups, or nations, in order...
- Economic sector
An economy may include several sectors , that evolved in successive phases.* The ancient economy was mainly based on subsistence farming....
- Employer branding
The term employer brand was first used in the early 1990s to denote an organisation’s reputation as an employer. Since then, it has become widely adopted by the global management community...
- Employment gap
- Employment rate
- Employment website
An employment website is a web site dealing specifically with employment or careers. Many employment websites are designed to allow employers to post job requirements for a position to be filled and are commonly known as job boards. Other employment sites offer employer reviews, career and...
- Equal opportunity employment
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the first federal law designed to protect most U.S. employees from employment discrimination based upon that employee's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin . The Title also established the U.S...
- Full employment
In macroeconomics, full employment is a condition of the national economy, where all or nearly all persons willing and able to work at the prevailing wages and working conditions are able to do so....
- Industrial relations
- Job analysis
Job analysis is the process of describing and recording aspects of jobs and specifying the skills and other requirements necessary to perform the job.-Purpose:...
- Job fair
A job fair is also referred commonly as a career fair or career expo. It is a fair or exposition for employers, recruiters and schools to meet with prospective job seekers. Expos usually include company or organization tables or booths where resumes can be collected and business cards can be...
- Jobless recovery
A jobless recovery or jobless growth is an economic phenomon in which a macroeconomy experiences growth while maintaining or decreasing its level of employment...
- Job (role)
A job is a regular activity performed in exchange for payment. A person usually begins a job by becoming an employee, volunteering, or starting a business. The duration of a job may range from an hour to a lifetime . If a person is trained for a certain type of job, they may have a profession...
- Labour economics
Labor economics seeks to understand the functioning and dynamics of the market for labor. Labor markets function through the interaction of workers and employers...
- Labour law
Labour law is the body of laws, administrative rulings, and precedents which address the legal rights of, and restrictions on, working people and their organizations. As such, it mediates many aspects of the relationship between trade unions, employers and employees...
- Labour market
- Labour power
- List of largest employers
- New unionism
New Unionism is a term which has been used twice in the history of the labour movement, both times involving moves to broaden the trade union agenda.-1880s:First was the development within the British trade union movement in the late 1880s...
- Occupational illness
- Onboarding
Onboarding, also known as organizational socialization, refers to the mechanism through which new employees acquire the necessary knowledge, skills, and behaviors to become effective organizational members and insiders...
- Payrolling
- Personnel selection
Personnel selection is the process used to hire individuals. Although the term can apply to all aspects of the process the most common meaning focuses on the selection of workers.-Overview:The professional standards of industrial psychologists require that any selection system be based on a job...
- Recruitment
Recruitment refers to the process of attracting, screening, and selecting qualified people for a job. For some components of the recruitment process, mid- and large-size organizations often retain professional recruiters or outsource some of the process to recruitment agencies.The recruitment...
- Reserve army of labour
Reserve army of labour is a concept in Karl Marx's critique of political economy. It refers basically to the unemployed in capitalist society. It is synonymous with "industrial reserve army" or "relative surplus population", except that the unemployed can be defined as those actually looking for...
(Marxism)
- Termination of employment
-Involuntary termination:Involuntary termination is the employee's departure at the hands of the employer. There are two basic types of involuntary termination, known often as being "fired" and "laid off." To be fired, as opposed to being laid off, is generally thought of to be the employee's...
- Underinvestment employment relationship
- Unemployment
Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...
- Wage labour
Wage labour is the socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer, where the worker sells their labour under a formal or informal employment contract. These transactions usually occur in a labour market where wages are market determined...
- Wage slavery
Wage slavery refers to a situation where a person's livelihood depends on wages, especially when the dependence is total and immediate. It is a negatively connoted term used to draw an analogy between slavery and wage labor, and to highlight similarities between owning and employing a person...
- Work-life balance
Work–life balance is a broad concept including proper prioritizing between "work" on the one hand and "life" on the other. Related, though broader, terms include "lifestyle balance" and "life balance".-History:The work-leisure dichotomy was invented in the mid 1800s...
- Workplace jargon
"Workplace jargon" is a term used in the United Kingdom to describe the often needless and/or meaningless sentences and phrases used by both managers and colleagues in the workplace instead of plain English....
- Workplace safety
Workplace safety & health is a category of management responsibility in places of employment.To ensure the safety and health of workers, managers establish a focus on safety that can include elements such as:* management leadership and commitment...
- Workplace spirituality
Workplace Spirituality or Spirituality in the Workplace is a movement that began in the early 1920s. It emerged as a grassroots movement with individuals seeking to live their faith and/or spiritual values in the workplace. One of the first publications to mention spirituality in the workplace...
External links