The Historical Transformation of Work
THE HISTORICAL TRANSFORMATION OF WORK
1
Chapter contents
Work in pre-industrial societies Work in industrial capitalist societies Main features of work in industrial capitalist societies Capitalist industrialization and the primacy of work Crises and industrial capitalism Technological and organizational change The rise of trade unions Women and work in the development of industrial capitalism The dominant conception of work in industrial capitalism Summary and conclusions Further reading Questions for discussion and assessment
Before the advent of industrial capitalism approximately 200 years ago in England, work referred in a generalized way to activities directed at satisfying the human need for survival, for the vast majority, at a subsistence level. In terms of the 40,000 years plus history of human societies, it is only in the recent past that work has become synonymous with regular paid employment, a separate sphere of specialized economic activity for which one receives payment. Thus, the current conception of work is a modern social construction, the product of specific historical conditions that are typically denoted by the term ‘industrial capitalism’. The first part of this term indicates that work is a productive activity involving machines powered by inanimate energy sources that is undertaken outside the home in a dedicated building that one has to travel to each work day. The second part indicates that work involves monetary payment, typically agreed in advance in relation to time and/or output, and is part of a market system in which productive property is privately owned with a view to making a profit and that everything has a price, including labour. The term ‘modern society’ refers to industrial society and although the process of modernization may start with industrialization, it is one that covers all aspects of social change, not just economic change. At the beginning
01-Edgell 2e-4314-Ch-01.indd 1
16/11/2011 10:03:51 AM
THE SOCIOLOGY
1
Chapter contents
Work in pre-industrial societies Work in industrial capitalist societies Main features of work in industrial capitalist societies Capitalist industrialization and the primacy of work Crises and industrial capitalism Technological and organizational change The rise of trade unions Women and work in the development of industrial capitalism The dominant conception of work in industrial capitalism Summary and conclusions Further reading Questions for discussion and assessment
Before the advent of industrial capitalism approximately 200 years ago in England, work referred in a generalized way to activities directed at satisfying the human need for survival, for the vast majority, at a subsistence level. In terms of the 40,000 years plus history of human societies, it is only in the recent past that work has become synonymous with regular paid employment, a separate sphere of specialized economic activity for which one receives payment. Thus, the current conception of work is a modern social construction, the product of specific historical conditions that are typically denoted by the term ‘industrial capitalism’. The first part of this term indicates that work is a productive activity involving machines powered by inanimate energy sources that is undertaken outside the home in a dedicated building that one has to travel to each work day. The second part indicates that work involves monetary payment, typically agreed in advance in relation to time and/or output, and is part of a market system in which productive property is privately owned with a view to making a profit and that everything has a price, including labour. The term ‘modern society’ refers to industrial society and although the process of modernization may start with industrialization, it is one that covers all aspects of social change, not just economic change. At the beginning
01-Edgell 2e-4314-Ch-01.indd 1
16/11/2011 10:03:51 AM
THE SOCIOLOGY