Introduction
Nowadays management plays a key role in a business organization. To be successful manager has to be mobile, determined, flexible, and know how to cooperate in a network. But while being useful for a manager, these features can be too hard for workers, who labor very hard to be compatible in a modern market. Therefore, there had been made a number of studies that proved the new capitalism to be extremely demanding to the workers.
Ideas expressed by Boltanski and Chapello
For example, in their book, Boltanski and Chapello describe the new paradigm of production to be one of the forms of workers’ exploitation. This idea is supported by a multitude of facts and illustrations. The authors are very convincing and the book can be considered to be rather persuasive. Therefore, it can be useful to analyze the means which the authors used to achieve such results.
Firstly, the authors describe the modern management system, highlighting its main points. Specifically, the distinguishing features of the way of organizing today’s business are mobility, multifunction, and flexibility. These qualities prove to be comfortable and beneficial for the customers and employers, but the conditions for workers are not always taken into consideration. For instance, the main demand for the employees is the ability to work anytime when it is comfortable for the customer.
Such flexible timetables can be a discriminating phenomenon, as the workers have to labor during peak hours without any additional fee. This process, together with others described in the book, is defined by the authors as the third stage in the new spirit of capitalism.
Secondly, Boltanski and Chapello (2007) state that “concealed behind the imperative of flexibility” (p. 227), the employers tend to rely on casual factors while choosing people to work. It means that there is no security for the workers because their skills or education became less important than mobility. There appeared a risk of losing a job for no reason, which caused great pressure on the workers. Namely, old people more and more often are becoming redundant because of early retirement which is practiced nowadays. People are easier to be controlled while they are in a state of fear, and the insecurity in terms of the job makes people work more intensively for the same money.
The other factors the authors concentrate on are such phenomena as part-time and temporary works. These forms of working are very profitable for employees, as they allow them to fulfill the working plans with minimum loss. Specifically, the workers get paid only for the hours of actual work. This excludes breaks, holidays, maternal leaves which used to be included in the salaries previously. This also leads to the increase of working hours beyond the legal schedule.
The authors illustrate this with the examples of firms that had no stable timetable and could either prolong or shorten the working day. Obviously, the first option was preferable. They mention McDonald’s, Toyota, and other powerful corporations which manipulate an incredibly large amount of employees using this technique. Such a system leaves no choice for some workers who have no possibility to take on full-time jobs and is fairly considered by Boltanski and Chapello to be an effective method of exploitation.
An interesting method mentioned in the book is the use of the pressure of the market to persuade people to work more. In this case, the intensity of work is being increased, as the workers are obliged to cope with all the tasks and satisfy the needs of customers on time. The employers can make the requirements for flexibility level greater and simply blame the difficulties on the market, which appears to be a pressure force. Just like in the previous cases, workers have to improve their skills and gain professional flexibility in order to be compatible.
What is more, there is a tendency of multifunction in different companies, which suggests that employees should have skills in various fields rather than being highly qualified in one particular sphere. For instance, Boltanski and Chapello (2007) “the functions performed by the heads of networks of specialist shops are often so extensive, that the networks can be guarded as quasi-firms” (p. 222).
The flexibility and strength of the market can be reached with the help of networking. It means that large groups which consist of many smaller units demand not many subcontractors who can focus on firm managing. Networking has become a key phenomenon in modern management. Interestingly, those who network are interested in connecting people who are already involved in a network. Therefore, those who do not network are likely to be left with no chances to be noticed.
But even here the workers’ mobility is limited compared to the managers’, though they are given the freedom to create and innovate. This fact together with all the mentioned above authors considers to be nothing but pure exploitation of workers. The new capitalism divides the people into great men, the managers, and little people, ordinary workers. Moreover, the tendency is that while little people do the dirty work sacrificing their personal interests, great people’s job is just to distribute tasks and gather money.
Critical analysis of Sennett
The arguments which Boltanski and Chapello presented in their book are extremely topical, especially in American society. A deep analysis of the new management systems shows its advantages and drawbacks and therefore leaves a place for improvement. These ideas were also supported by another author, Sennett. He made a great contribution to the study and also established the existence of various forms of exploitation in modern business.
Specifically, Sennett notices, that networking is a basis of a profitable business system nowadays. It is being realized on different levels: local, national, international. The greater the area, the more possibilities for developing the firm has.
The networker gives workers a task and demands to do whatever is needed to be done. This implies working on one project putting a lot of effort into it. Workers have to develop various skills, work at any time, and at the same time they practically get no extra payment. Thus, Sennet states that managers control workers and he distinguishes three main elements of this control. The first one is creating disposable institutions which allow a creative approach to the tasks and in this way make it easier for the manager to control the projects. The second element is the flexibility of specialization, which is identical to Boltanski and Chapello’s idea. Finally, the last element is the concentration of power rather than centralizing it.
At first sight, it may appear beneficial for workers to be involved in the system described above. Indeed, there are no certain rules; in addition, workers are encouraged to be creative. But, on the other hand, manager is the one who distributes the workload among the workers. Thus, they can save money giving a greater amount of work to smaller number of people. Such management model is another illustration of workers’ exploitation on the modern market.
However, the key conflict discussed by Sennett is the internal one. He states that the management systems can not only be difficult for workers’ career, but also cause a psychological pressure. The author states that the formation of character needs essential conditions. To be confident and to have inspiration to be creative, a person should sometimes be encouraged. In today’s system people are predominantly denigrated. Therefore, the new capitalism, according to Sennett, can prove an impediment for normal development of one’s character.
Conclusion
In conclusion it must be said that the modern management system has contributed a lot to the companies’ profit. The developed system of control has also led to redistribution of payments, which appeared to be much more beneficial to the networkers. But the interests of workers are often degraded. Disorganized schedule, instable workload, low salaries, market competition, and insecurity are the main difficulties which are faced by workers in the capitalistic society nowadays. Therefore, Boltanski, Chapello, and Sennett have defined such a system as exploitation and proved it with a multitude of examples.
References
Boltanski, L., & Chapello, E. (2007). The new spirit of capitalism. Verso.
Sennett, R. (1998). The corrosion of characters. Norton.
Smith, V. (2002). Crossing the great divide. Cornell University Press.