یک مطالعه موردی مقایسه ای از ایفای نقش سیستم و نهادها در پیکربندی اتحادیه ها
ABSTRACT
1- INTRODUCTION
2- EXPLAINING THE SOCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LEAN PRODUCTION
3- THE TWO CONTEXTS UNDER STUDY
4- RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHOD
5- TRADITIONAL EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS
6- DISTINCTIVE EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS
References
ABSTRACT
Several studies have acknowledged that lean production is implemented in diverse ways across workplaces, thereby generating different outcomes for workers. However, explanations for this variability needs further development. The present article addresses this issue by considering the role played by workplace unions’ framing of lean production. It finds that unions’ framing is derived from their identities in interaction with available resources in institutional and organisational terms. A case study comparison of the automotive parts industry in Italy and the United States was conducted.
INTRODUCTION
Lean production constitutes a diffuse organisational model. While it has been proven capable of increasing companies’ competitiveness (Shah and Ward, 2007), its outcomes for workers, namely, its social performance, remain disputed (Distelhorst et al., 2016). In focusing on organisational and human resource management (HRM) practices, lean production is perceived as representing a bottom-up approach to implementing technical principles and related techniques aimed at improving both the efficiency of production processes and work experience (Shah and Ward, 2007). This approach would encompass the transformation from Taylor-Ford organisational models to the adoption of both distinctive and traditional (but nevertheless differently regulated) employment arrangements (Godard, 2004; Pagell et al., 2014). Indeed, a number of studies have demonstrated that the application of lean production in the field of human capital deployment varies among workplaces. For instance, Adler and Borys (1996) found that in the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. auto plant, which was co-founded by Toyota and General Motors and applies lean production principles, workers were considerably more engaged than was the case in traditional Taylor-Ford factories because they were allowed to standardise and formalise the most efficient work procedures by accounting for their working conditions. In contrast, paying attention to the British automotive industry, Stewart et al. (2009) argued that the realities of lean production involved increased production pressures and greater stress. However, the reasons behind this variation and contrasting consequences for workers remain unclear (Bamber et al., 2014).