Avhandlingen är en könsteoretisk studie av organisationsförändringar i industrin - med fokus på kvinnor som arbetar med produktionsarbete. Avhandlingen beskriver vad som händer med organisationsstrukturen och med genusordningen i organisationen när företaget försöker införa en platt integrerad arbetsorganisation. Empirin omfattar åtta svenska industriföretag: fem massa- och papper, ett tvätteri, ett charkuteri och ett elektronikföretag. Resultaten visar att återställare och dämpande krafter ute i lokala arbetsorganisationer drar organisationen tillbaka till sitt ursprungliga utseende. Många av återställarna har koppling till "kön" och genusordningen. De lokala organisationernas utgångsläge inför organisationsförändringarna bygger ofta på en struktur som ger olika villkor för kvinnor och för män. Denna könsordning är en förklaring till många återställare och det är dessutom ofta just den som återställs. Genusordningens segregerande och hierakiserande krafter gör att människor lätt återskapar gamla könsmönster i nya organisationer. Detta innebär att de nya organisationsmodellernas strävan efter integrering, tillplattning, kompetensutveckling och flexibilitet riskerar att motarbetas. En stark och omfattande könsmärkning och könsuppdelning i utgångsläget inför organisationsförändringen innebär många återställare och därmed svårare att införa den platta integrerade arbetsorganisationen.
Det finns positiva tecken på att något ska hända med arbetslivsforskningensvillkor. Mer bekymmersamt är att facket och arbetsgivarna vill återskapaett nationellt centrum för arbetslivsforskning i Stockholm. Vi börinte fortsätta att reproducera bilden av att svensk arbetslivsforskningförsvann när Arbetslivsinstitutet lades ned. Det finns många starkaforskargrupper på universiteten ute i landet. Nu är det viktigt att vi ser tillatt de positiva signalerna blir verklighet på ett klokt sätt så att bredden iarbetslivsforskningen säkras.
This empirical article presents a gender analysis of long-term impacts of some of the many organizational change projects in Swedish industrial work organizations during the 1990s. Based on the results of return visits to three industrial companies and their change projects (implementation of Lean Production or other modern organizational models) that I studied more than a decade earlier, I discuss how the work organizations eventually had changed and specifically how and whether organizational internal gender patterns had changed. The initial study showed gender-based restoring responses to strategic organizational changes, especially in the gender-segregated and gender-homogeneous work organizations. These responses conserved gender patterns as well as the organizations’ culture in general, resulting in less productive work as well as a problematic work environment. The follow-up study showed that the organizations slowly changed according to the modern organizational models (e.g., Lean Production), but at the same time, in some cases, keeping the same gender segregation and stereotypical gender markings of skills and work tasks or with new variants of unequal gender order. In addition, the follow-up study showed other and more positive results with emerging pattern of gender equality, at least in the form of reduced gender segregation and less stereotypical ideas concerning gender. The material indicates that the studied companies, in some aspects, developed into less gendered production organizations while taking some steps toward a modern organization and this was done without gender equality interventions. Therefore, the material indicated that, at least in part, gender equality could be seen as a prerequisite or perhaps even a side effect of modern organizational concepts. This article contributes to the emerging literature on an organizational theory of undoing gender as well as to the research of conditions and consequences of the modern organizational models.
Raises questions about the links between gender and organizational changes, and between gender and learning at work. The empirical base is a qualitative study of organizational changes in the pulp and paper industry, electronics industry, food industry, and laundry industry in Sweden during the late 1990s. In the studied companies, restoration responses in the work organizations brought the organization back its original form and function. Shows that gender exerts an influence on the existing work organization and on the organizational change. The learning organization, with its focus on integration and decentralization, challenges gender order, which is a strong system, built on segregation and hierarchy. Concludes that gender segregating and stereotypic gender-coding of workplaces and work tasks were strong restoring mechanisms and obstacles to strategic organizational changes, and to individual and to organizational learning.
On the advice of an independent consultancy specialising in ergonomics and man management, a new ladle preparation station was designed for SSAB in Lulea. Quantifiable savings close to £0.5M have resulted, plus less tangible benefits arising from a more satisfied work force
Explores realities between theoretical & practical developments in the advancement of gender equality in professional organizations. Gender inequality, understood to be a hindrance to the ultimate potential advance of any organization, has long been the target of theories & approaches aiming to help organizations restructure to allow for optimal gender equality & integration performance. However, it is often the case that even when these theories move beyond the rhetorical & into the realm of real institution, their ideal is not fully realized because of factors that make for only a partial implementation & therefore permit old ways of thinking to compromise the envisioned restructuring. In any such restructuring, both masculine & feminine roles undergo a change of definition & thus of application toward assignments that have stereotypically been predominantly associated with a given gender. Some of the facets of these mutations are detailed here. To potentiate a thorough change in gender roles & equality that would benefit both men & women as well as the organizations they work for, it is imperative to encourage further work that gains a deeper recognition of the actual symbols, structures, & practices that impact gender difference in all technical & organizational dimensions
This paper describes a conceptual framework for a study of work organisational structures in small companies. The goal is to gain a greater understanding of both strategic and unconscious organisational design processes in small companies. The starting point of the analysis is the diffuse and informal 'family' type of work organisation and the step to a more strategic and formal work organisation. The gender theory is used when discussing internal organisational obstacles for growth and organisational forming processes. Gender plays perhaps a more important role in small companies than in large companies. Therefore the small company may have a development quite contradictory to its own sound origins. During the growing process there is a risk that the small company develops a rigid and inflexible organisation based on old gender pattern.
This article describes the results of an evaluation of a new work place for ladle preparation at Swedish Steel in Luleå, Sweden. The company initiated a development project related to ladle service work, in order to come to grips with the difficult working environment and problems associated with absenteeism due to illness and occupational injuries. The evaluation was performed for the first three years after implementation of the project and it shows that the new work place considerably improved working conditions and increased both the quality and efficiency of production. The purpose of this article is also to discuss some methodological problems. The follow-up of the various changes in working environment and personnel statistics was fairly simple to carry out. But in terms of production effects, the company's in-house production follow-up system proved to be too unspecified and oversimplified. It was also difficult to decide which changes should count as effects of the new work place and to value these in monetary terms. The profitability calculation shows that an investment initiated to improve the working environment can yield good profitability.