Praxis: Job Quality in Britain
In the last decade job quality has been a prominent issue in policy circles. The vision of “more and better jobs” has been advanced by the British government, and separately by both the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and the European Commission. Business leaders, at the same time, have called for more skilled workers, while trade unions have been drawing attention to the increasingly demanding and stressful nature of modern workplaces and the need to improve the quality of work life (European Commission, 2008).
Praxis: Job Quality in Britain (PDF, 139 Kb)
Published November 2009
This edition of Praxis raises a number of critical issues that have significant implications for employment and skills policy development. Here Katerina Rudiger, Policy Analyst at the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, highlights some of these.
1. In this paper Francis Green highlights the strong link between good quality work and performance, but stresses that “the causal chain is not yet well understood” (p9). Firms will only change if they have the incentives, awareness and ability to do so. In order to establish a coherent narrative on good quality work, do policymakers need more evidence on this causal chain?
2. Where evidence on the link between the quality of work and performance does exist how is it presented to employers? Is making the case for job quality as a fundamental right enough or do we need a ‘business case’ for good work?
3. Workplace policy in the UK is, compared to other European countries, underdeveloped. In the current institutional framework, many employers will continue to find it efficient to organise work in such a way that workers are easily replaceable, with low autonomy, job security or development opportunities. Is there any need for further policy intervention in this area? What would this look like? What can the UK learn from other countries?
4. High Performance Working (HPW) practices, as an approach to managing work organisations, are strongly associated with increased economic performance and general employee well-being, higher job satisfaction and motivation. As a result they are seen to offer mutual advantage to the individual and the employer. Yet the average UK workplace adopts few HPW practices and the levels of awareness around good practice are low. What is the role of government in encouraging the uptake of HPW practices? Does the current public policy framework support HPW?
5. Good management and leadership are not only a result of HPW but also lead to the greater uptake of HPW practices. Management and leadership skills are crucial for better job design and autonomy in the workplace. Does the UK have a deficit in management capability and if so what needs to be done to address this?
6. The paper argues that some aspects of job quality may have deteriorated in recent decades because of the introduction of modern technologies. What is the connection between the spread of ICT and general purpose technologies and job quality? Why has greater work place innovation not resulted in greater job autonomy?
7. What impact does skills utilisation in the work place have on job quality and employee satisfaction? There has been an increase in worker’s skills but has this also led to a greater application of these skills in the workplace? How far do workplaces support and enable workers to use their skills?
