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The aim of this study is to analyze the differences between non-standard forms of employment (FoE) (i.e. dependent self-employment/business-to-business/B2B contract and contract of mandate) in terms of investing in the development of future competencies by employees and employers. This study also examined additional factors which influence these investments.

To collect data, the computer-assisted telephone interview technique was used. 200 employees from different companies located in Poland participated in this study, wherein each of the above-mentioned FoEs (i.e. dependent self-employment and contract of mandate) was represented by 100 people. The Chi-Square test and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used in the statistical analyses.

In the case of only 2 out of 14 competencies, there were statistically significant differences between the two groups of respondents: the employers financed training courses for B2B employees more frequently than for mandate contract workers. Moreover, in only one case there was a statistically significant difference: the self-employed financed training courses themselves more often than mandate contract workers. This study revealed an important impact of other variables such as respondents’ age, education level, parental status and industry on the training activities undertaken by employers and employees.

Although the issue of developing future competencies is important, there is little research examining this problem in the context of people who work in non-standard FoE. Moreover, previous research primarily focused on identifying differences between people working under employment contracts and the self-employed. This article fills these research gaps as well as shows that more factors should be considered in the research models to get a deeper insight into the problem of non-standard FoEs.

The purpose of the article is to outline the insights provided by Alan Fox in Man Mismanagement in relation to the rise of the New Right political economy and the spread of unitarist managerialism. The article assesses the contemporary work and employment relations implications of mismanagement arising from a “second wave” of the New Right ideology from 2010 in the UK.

Responding to the Special Issue on Alan Fox, the article focuses on Alan Fox's book Man Mismanagement, considering industrial relations developments arising between the 1st (1974b) and 2nd (1985) editions relating to the political rise of the New Right. It reviews various literature that illustrates the contemporary IR relevance of the book and Fox's insights.

The New Right’s ideology has further fragmented work, disjointed labour rights and undermined collective industrial relations institutions, and macho mismanagement praxis is even more commonplace, compared to when Fox wrote Man Mismanagement. The stripping away of the institutional architecture of IR renders the renewal of pluralist praxis, like collective bargaining and other forms of joint regulation of work, a formidable task.

The value of the article relates to the identification of dramatic historical industrial relations events and change in the UK in Alan Fox's book Man Mismanagement, most notably relating to the rise to power of the Thatcherite New Right in 1979. Originality is evidenced by the authors’ drawing on Fox's ideas and assessing the implications of the “second wave” of the New Right in the contemporary industrial relations (IR) context of the 2020s under the conceptual themes of fragmented work, disjointed labour rights and undermined collectivism.

The paper aims at assessing the role of the different stages of the employment process in gauging workers' willingness to upskill themselves at the end of a seasonal employment contract by investing in further training.

The paper analyses data from a dedicated survey administered to a sample of seasonal employees. Through a regression analysis it explores the different stages of the employment process (job search, selection on the job activities), making a distinction between monetary and nonmonetary components of the investment in training.

Results show that all stages matter, but they do not have the same importance. Ex-ante motivations and work experience, notably the level of perceived workload and organizational commitment, are the main factors affecting workers' willingness to acquire industry-specific skills through training.

So far, the literature has extensively dealt with the poor levels of training in seasonal employers, but it did not analyse worker’s willingness to invest in training over the different stages of the worker experience. This paper fills this gap by separately testing the relative importance of such stages and identifying the most important phases of the employment process.

Drawing upon a political economy approach, this article aims to analyze the transformations in the labor market within the context of contemporary capitalism, focusing on the phenomenon of financialization.

Financialization is defined as a distinct wealth pattern marked by a growing proportion of financial assets in capitalist wealth. Within financial markets, corporate performance is continuously assessed, in a process that disciplines management to achieve expected financial results, with consequences throughout corporate management.

We find that this phenomenon has implications for labor management, resulting in the intensification of labor processes and the adoption of insecure forms of employment, leading to the fractalization of work. These two mechanisms, added to the indebtedness of workers, constitute three elements for disciplining labor in contemporary capitalism.

We argue that these forms of discipline constitute a subsumption of labor to finance, resulting in an increase in labor exploitation. This formulation of the relationship between financialization and changes in the realm of labor also contributes to understanding the unrealizing potential of social free time in contemporary capitalism.

The efficient functioning of the labour market is an important factor that affects long-term economic growth. The interaction of supply and demand on the labour market is influenced by institutions which change the motivations and behaviour of economic actors and, ultimately, the flexibility of the labour market. There is no consensus in the literature on the effect these institutions have on labour market outcomes. This chapter focuses on a set of selective labour market institutions (employment protection legislation, minimum wages, unemployment benefits, labour taxation, trade unions and active labour market policies), compares their relevance to other European Union (EU) countries and through the lens of the Beveridge curve it tries to evaluate their impact on effectiveness of the Czech labour market. The international comparison shows that most of the considered institutions/regulations do not reach such importance (except employment protection legislation) and that they have a significant negative effect on labour market outcomes. Even the model of the Beveridge curve does not indicate that the Czech labour market is characterised by rigidities that would impair the effectiveness of a matching process at the aggregate level.

This study investigates the mediating role of wage and workforce adjustments, along with the moderating influence of collective bargaining system and employees’ localization, in elucidating the relationship between the COVID-19 shock and workplace employee relations (ER) tension.

Survey data from 1,483 enterprises across 21 prefectural cities in China’s Guangdong Province are collected. The hypotheses are tested by logistic regression.

The study reveals a positive correlation between the COVID-19 shock and workplace ER tension across crisis-hit enterprises, irrespective of their size or industrial sector. Wage reduction and mass layoffs emerge as significant mediators, while the collective bargaining system (CBS) and employees’ localization act as moderators.

The measurement of ER is limited in a single-item scale. Representation of China is also limited since the study exclusively focuses on Guangdong province. The study offers some contributions that firm-level data reveal the pathway through which COVID-19 creates ER tension.

On the one hand, the authors recommend the establishment of an effective communication system between employers and employees. On the other hand, managers should consider the role of informal institutions. Furthermore, the authors suggest implementing tailored strategies at the enterprise level.

Intense external shocks result in widespread layoffs and increased wage reductions within workplaces, and under such circumstances, formal or informal institutions may be insufficient to alleviate ER tension. In this case, the state authorities – including governments and other public agencies or bodies – are necessary to intervene in to organize tripartite dialogue.

While numerous emerging studies on COVID-19 explore how different countries manage industrial relations tension at the national level, few focus on ER at workplace level, particularly in developing countries. Understanding how workplace ER evolve during external shocks and identifying institutional measures to mitigate their negative impact is crucial for future crisis management.

Drawing on organismic integration theory, we aim to examine whether the reasons independent contractors choose contract work are related to their on-the-job motivation and job satisfaction and whether their perceived support enhances positive (or buffers negative) effects.

We collected data at three separate time points from 241 adjunct instructors to test a moderated mediation model using bootstrapping analyses.

The positive relationship between pull factors (e.g. autonomy) and job satisfaction is fully mediated by the autonomous motivation contractors experienced at work. The inverse relationship between push factors (e.g. inability to secure desired work role) and job satisfaction is not mediated by autonomous nor controlled motivation experienced at work. Contractors' perceived organizational support does not moderate the relationship between either push or pull factors and autonomous motivation. Post hoc analysis shows a moderating effect of perceived supervisor support on the nonlinear relationship between push factors and autonomous motivation.

Recruiting individuals drawn to the benefits of contract work may have important implications for worker motivation, job satisfaction and potentially beyond. Moreover, organizations may consider whether existing support resources and infrastructure are appropriate for contractors.

Despite the abundance of evidence demonstrating the benefits of organizational and supervisor support among traditional employee populations, such support may be of limited value to those drawn to contract work.

After completion of this case study, students/managers will be able to analyze reasons for the labor unrest at Wistron Corporation’s Indian manufacturing plant; examine the implementation of labor regulations applicable to the employment of contract workers by Wistron Corporation; infer the problems associated with rapid expansion in the workforce; analyze the labor regulatory challenges faced by Wistron Corporation; and demonstrate problem-solving skills.

The focus of this case study was the crisis faced by Apple’s contract manufacturer  –  Wistron Corporation due to labor unrest, riots and violence in its production facility located near Bangalore in India. This case study discussed the CEO’s dilemma in resolving the crisis and regaining the confidence of stakeholders, namely, the contract employees, Apple Inc. and the State Government of Karnataka. To give the readers an overview of the crisis – this case discussed in detail the underlying reasons for the labor unrest such as a rapid increase in manpower, unilateral increase in working hours without extra pay, unjustified pay cuts, understaffed and underqualified human resources (HR) department, ill-equipped attendance and payroll system. It also gave an overview of mistakes in labor management that could be avoided by a manufacturing firm. The case also discussed the pressure faced by the Wistron CEO due to probation and a new business freeze by Apple Inc. This case study is suitable for understanding the complexities of labor laws and the legal complications that can arise when a corporation disregards local labor laws while operating in foreign countries.

The case is best suited for postgraduate and executive MBA students studying labor law, industrial psychology and HR management in commerce and business management streams. The authors suggest that the instructor should inform students to read the case study before attending the 90-min session. It can be executed in the classroom after discussing the theoretical concepts.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 6: Human Resource Management.

The 50th anniversary of Fox's Beyond Contract and Man Mismanagement coincides with another vital contribution to the sociology of work from 1974: Braverman's Labor and Monopoly Capital. This article analyses these two scholars' complementary approaches to job design and the extent to which Fox's ideas influenced subsequent labour process thought.

The article's methodological approach is a historiographical reading of Fox and Braverman's thought in the context of their times and later scholarship.

The article demonstrates that despite some noteworthy overlap with Braverman concerning scientific management, Fox's insights were marginal to later iterations of labour process analysis. It delves into the reasons for this relative neglect, providing an understanding of the dynamics at play.

This paper's value lies in its combined industrial relations and labour process historiography. It offers a fresh perspective on Alan Fox's relationship to the latter field of study.

Skilled workers are crucial for an organization’s success, and managing, retaining and attracting them is vital in long-term. This study aims to explore talent management practices in the Finnish restaurant industry and to align workers' expectations with the real-world experiences of their work to reduce turnover and enhance job satisfaction.

The study adopts a mixed methods approach, including a survey and interviews with workers and managers to gain insights into their expectations and experiences of work. The study considers themes for designing and implementing effective talent management procedures.

This study highlights the importance of employees' experiences of their work conditions, leveraging positive emotions and fair utilization of temporary agency work (TAW). Understanding the different work preferences of generational cohorts and addressing the challenges associated with owner disengagement and TAW can also contribute to attracting and retaining talent in the restaurant industry.

Skilled workers have often been portrayed as targets that need to be managed, with insufficient consideration given to their preferences, needs and expectations. With the findings of this study, companies can establish mutual understanding with their employees and attract diverse talent.