DESCRIBE HOW THE WORKPLACE HAS ALTERED OVER THE LAST 100
YEARS.
(With
emphasis on the post-nuclear period).
“Technocrats are the
dominant elite rather than the Bourgeoisie, and developments in microelectronics,
and intellectual technology are encouraging this process” Bell (1974), cited by
Rowe (1990) People & Chips. P17.
This essay will discuss what changes
have evolved in the common workplace, looking at both industry and commerce.
The pre-nuclear period will be briefly discussed, but emphasis will be placed
mainly from the 1950s to the present day. Technological ‘milestones’ will be
used to discuss the effect of that technology upon the workplace of that era.
To separate the workplace from the impact of these technological inventions
would imply that ‘All technology was
good for all people’.
The office could well be said to
have started with the first (known) cuneiform writing and recording onto clay
tablets, of the creation myths of the ‘Enuma Elish’ by the Babylonians (600BC.)
This was probably the first permanent ‘event’ recording to be re-used by other
people to give what was once seen as a true story. From here through Egyptian and Arabic scriptology, we have our
basic means of recording and storing of information for future use. The use of the written word by hand was
until the Victorian era our only way of saving data, and in the Victorian era
formed the basis of commercial business.
Bell (1973) says “That cheap repetitive printing in the 19th
century did allow some commercial firms to make their yearly statements
available to potential investors”.
The working conditions of the time were amply portrayed by
writers of the era such as Charles Dickens et al. From this pseudo historical
description, we are led to believe, that all 18th/19th-office
work was labour intensive and laborious. The workplace was usually a section
within the merchant’s city house, so that direct control of all the office was
immediate. The hiring of lesser well
off cousins and nephews (male only)
usually made up the office staff of this time.
The poverty of this ‘lesser family’ ensured their continual humility of
labour, and their acceptance of poor working conditions.
In industry too, the factories where also labour intensive in
spite of the use of some degree of automation (i.e. Cotton spinning etc.) The
centralisation of workers away from cottage industries (which the factories had
under cut), into collective workplaces controlled by others was in full swing
in this period. Therefore by the 1900s
we saw the start of ‘employee collectives’ as a prerequisite for progress,
(apart from the singular craft trades).
This collection of like skilled people corralled within a business, was
deemed profitable for the employer irrespective of the feelings of the
individual worker.
Throughout the early 20th
century little or no progress was made in either workplace. Factories became more labour intensive (WW1
fuelled this). Heavy productive
industries such as coal and iron production became the means of estimating a
countries progress, and the manual worker was seen as the lowest common
denominator. The office workplace
remained for the greater part an area of pen and ink ledgers, although the
early ‘Standard’ upright typewriters were being introduced for outside mailings
by the bigger commercial companies. The
introduction of the mechanical ‘Adding-Machine’ by IBM in (1952) (called the
‘Comptomometer’) was seen as a major invention, in its time. This invention
removed the need for so many clerks in offices and banks, and perhaps can be
seen as the first of the worker/automation losses of later years. Thus the stage was set for the next 20+
years with little in the way of inventions that would move the workplace
forward. Perhaps at this early stage
(1930s) the division of working skills between the blue-collar manual worker
and the so-called white-collar office worker became a factor. This divergence of skills and means of
production would now forever divide the common workers, with each seeking a
separate and better wage structure from the other. Many offices were moved away from the factory site, and thus
gained status as a clean area of work, although with lower productive skills
than that of the industrial worker.
The invention of the ’Electric Stepping Relay’, (a telegraph
selection and routing device), and the use of the ‘Thermionic Valve’ as a
switching diode (apart from its then present use as a detection device for
radio waves) was to have a profound effect by the 1940/50s. Its effect upon the workplace was quite
profound. The ability of companies to
communicate with customers at a cheap rate became an important office
tool. Many companies even set up large
switchboards, which gave employment to a new class of worker, ‘The
Telly-girls’. Thousands of women where
hired by the then ‘Post Office’ for its national and international boards. This sort of work (with its need for privacy
and confidentiality) however was strict and authoritarian, with almost no
promotion prospects, but it did provide ‘respectable’ employment for women.
The effect of World War II. had hastened the need for the use of
high speed switching devices to help with code breaking (Enigma) (it used
Thermionic Valves, which failed frequently and generated a lot of heat). The breakthrough came at Bell Laboratories
in 1947. Three researchers (Bardeen, Brattain and Shockley) invented the
‘Transistor’ using germanium doped with an impurity that could be used as a switching
diode or amplifier without the restrictions imposed when valves where used.
Large (1984) says, “The first digital computer using discrete components was
built at Bell Labs. in 1958 by Felker” This fact was singularly, the greatest
forward invention that would change the workplace forever. Bell (1973) gave this era as the start of
the post-industrial society. He says “The
post industrial society was characterised by a shift from goods producing to
service industry, and by the codification of theoretical knowledge, with
knowledge and innovation serving as the strategic and transforming resources of
society, just as capital and labour had been in earlier industrial society”.
As Bell Laboratories was
the research arm of ‘Bell Telephones’
the first use of the transistor was to revamp the telephone and telegraph
systems. (Used extensively in the first place to replace the old
electro-mechanical relay systems). The
use of transistors (now using other crystal substrates as well as germanium)
has allowed high speed switching and routing of the automatic exchange. This
new technology was heavily used by the modern workplace, and has replaced the
older manual switchboards and of course the need to hire switchboard operators (cost savings plus, plus in wages etc.) Automatic telephone switching is probably
the first use of technology, not only to improve communications, but also as an
example of cost and manpower reduction in the modernised workplace. Forester (1990) says “That entire female
workforces were replaced by these automatic exchanges, although the need for
highly qualified electronic (as opposed to Electro-mechanical) engineers
arose”.
Following the automatic telephone
exchanges, came the need to produce an instrument to replace the old mechanical
typewriter so beloved of the ‘Typing Pools’ which formed the basis of a
companies permanent record keeping and ordering system. The advent of the electrically driven
typewriter improved speed, but any mistake in a document usually meant
re-typing the whole document all over again (Expensive and time consuming
etc.). IBM in (? 1963) stuffed a rather
crude memory card into one of its ‘Selecta’ typewriters and coined the word
‘Word-Processor’ This allowed some correction of errors if caught early on in the
script, and of course was the forerunner of the word processor we use
nowadays.
The invention of the chip-technology expanded, whereby ‘etching’
a strip of substrate, allowed more and more transistors, (plus their associated resistors and
condensers) to be incorporated into recognised and repeatable outcome modules.
These modules where made to interconnect in such a way that memory and function
became integrated. Thus was born the
first computer proper.
Early use of the computer entered
the workplace in two main forms, which were to completely revolutionise the
average and even mundane workplace. Firstly, the electronic calculator, which
promptly ousted the mechanical calculator. Secondly came the computerised word
processor that later allowed a typist full control over her output, with its
self correcting spell checkers etc. The
combination of both inventions allowed a composite structure that even today
forms the basis of the modern office.
The calculator ('Electronic
Tabulator') was the result of IBM research; their work on cash registers gave
it the skills to move over into adding machines, and later into word processors
(along with many other companies). The
use of adding machines revolutionised the work place, and reduced the errors of
human calculation. Forester (1990)
points out that, the new electronic adding machines “Had the ability to perform
accurate, repeatable manipulation of quantitative data, and as such were bound
to replace many office workers who used to do these repetitive jobs by hand”,
and of course it created many workplace casualties, mainly in the large
insurance companies and banks. They
rapidly replaced their army of back office clerks in favour of these ‘Tabulators’. This again increased company profits but can
only be seen as a detrimental act against its workplace employees.
The
introduction of the dedicated word processor met exactly the needs of nearly
every office, and became (and still is) the most central form of office
automation. However if we believe that
one-day we will have a paperless office, then its days must be numbered, but at
the moment remains the office backbone.
Coupled with a built in fax, telephone selectors, Internet ready (in a
commercial sense only), rapid inter-office communication becomes an easy
accomplishment, and a daily occurrence.
Not every employee was happy with this. Martin (1995) says “When a
computer/word processor was given to each manager to use, they revolted. They felt they could not do without their
own secretary. (Who was retrieved from the typing pool and returned to the
manager’s office)? Snobbery, self-importance.
It seems that not even technology can remove some long-standing
privileges if you are a manager”.
The use of a word processor coupled into a ring network has
obviated the need for each worker to have his or her own desk. They could
simply take any free desk, sign on and commence work. This was seen as a social insult by some of the workers, who felt
that their company no longer valued them as individuals. In some companies this loss of personalised
‘space’ induced almost a degree of grieving, and personal productivity was
reduced. Uncaring office managers saw
it as a cost saving venture and it still persists even to day in large clerking
companies. (I.e. Pools checking, telephone service centres etc). Surely at this stage the workplace lost its
friendliness, and became simply a means of earning an income. (With the least
input, probably).
In the industrial workplace the use
of electronic profiling became the norm with a huge loss of the previously
skills acquired through years of apprenticeship. We are all aware of the huge robotic profile machines that work
24hrs a day in isolated factory warehouses, served only by the (often-singular)
'electronic engineer'. These machines
work in total darkness unaided. Large
(1984) says, “The robotic factory, as such is cheap to construct, as it does
not have to meet any human health and safety rules, (no loos, drinking water,
fire escapes etc, windows, ventilation etc.)
Any changes in the work done by these machines can be downloaded from
distant engineering offices”.
Replacement raw materials arrive automatically from ‘just in time’
automated warehouses, and so on, ad infinitum.
Thus the working place of the traditional manual worker is becoming
almost extinct for the masses. (Apart
from assembly plants at the moment, but even these are gradually moving over to
robotic-automation). These changes will
no doubt be progressive, and may in time become a precursor, for a loss of
masculinity in the male, as the main breadwinner within the family unit.
The modernisation of the once
skilled factory workplace has created a change within the gender of it
participants. There has been an increase in female employment, which is seen as
a cheap alternative to the once expensive skilled male worker. Many modern workplaces have become simple
assembly lines for component placement (i.e. Television assembly lines, White
goods etc.). This work is relatively
unskilled, and therefore part time married women, whose demands are easier to
meet, can populate the workplace.
Generally the female part time worker is poorly paid, with neither job
satisfaction, or guaranteed continuity of employment. Large (1984) cites gross changes in the workplace for females. He
says
“The use of computer checking (through the use of computerised
scanners) at ‘Vernons Pools’ has reduced what was once a ‘family’ job (Mother
and Daughters etc. working together locally) has now become a mind numbing
scanning job with work targets set each week.
The checking offices have moved away from the city where people live,
and the work is done in huge converted warehouses. The workforce has reduced by 80%, but the workload has increased
many times over, for the same wages”
Large (1984) gives many other
instances of work-place changes brought on by computerisation of a
process. All these changes reduced
operating costs, and of course raised profits. But none of them where done for
the betterment of the worker.
By combining faster processor’s with stacked storage devices, It
became possible to create huge multi use machines; (Mainframes) the output
processing power of the computer was also increased many times. These machines grossly changed the
workplace. Their size necessitated the formation of a specialised corporate
structure (‘The IT Department’). In the
80s the age of the huge mainframe computer was seen as the ideal control
centre, within which the entire workplace, whether industrial or commercial
would be controlled from. These
powerhouses soon became ‘temples’ of almost ‘Geakish’ proportions to which
management paid homage. The average worker was now really only seen as an
acolyte, to feed the mainframe. These IT departments within many corporations
were created, with special buildings, whose hygienic housing standards rivalled
that of an ‘Operating Theatre’. To become a programmer in them was seen as
the ultimate career path, the IT manager him/herself was soon moved onto the
board of directors.
This movement towards the integration of a central singular
megalith was seen by most average workers as the holy grail, and no matter what
they thought, the workers working practice was changed to meet it needs. In fact these mainframes became the perfect
excuse for bad working practices.
Sloppy workmanship within the office was often trotted out as a computer
fault. Customers complaints where often
met with the same excuse. Such was the
haste for their incorporation, that computer fraud rose upon the backs of bad
programming practices, (backdoor access etc.).
It was an even stranger fact that this fraud was seen by many as an
expected ‘blokey-bloke’ thing, which
was often hidden away from shareholders and customers alike, (for fear of
adverse publicity). Authors such as Forester (1990), Large (1984), Martin
(1995) and Rowe (1990) write at great length of fraud within the
workplace. The possibility of
large-scale fraud has certainly changed the workplace. Even routine typists are spied upon through
their feeder LANs. Finance department
run ‘audit trails’ on all their finance staff.
Software authenticity is audited weekly etc. Thus the workplace has become a place where the management
mistrusts their employees as a matter of routine, and the ‘Board’ mistrusts
their management ad infinitum.
In the 1980s Taylor (1980) cited in Rowe (1990) advocated his
concept of the workers role in the workplace. Taylor proposed his system of
‘Taylorism’ “In my system, the worker is told minutely what he is to do and how
he is to do it, and any improvement upon the instructions given to him is to be
considered fatal to its success” The above demonstrates the treatment meted out
to workers within the workplace. They
rapidly became machine minders blindly carrying out tasks to which no personal
innovation was tolerated. This was technology with Victorian taskmaster
perceptions once again. Rowe (1990) in
his arguments of Optimism/Pessimism within the workplace however says “Technology
optimists maintain that it will not only remove repetitiveness from the
managers role, but will allow greater participation in decision at all levels
within the workplace.”
Many authors have written on the evils of these megalithic
‘mainframes, and their effect upon working practices. It is often stated that thousands of skilled workers in the
finance industries lost their jobs, to the lower paid data entry typists. Many of the older specialised departments
(Finance, Audit etc.) within a corporation where dissolved. Finance, purchase and ordering, stock
control and some levels of management where to be controlled in future by
centralised computers. Many of its now
former staff and workers soon found that other jobs where no longer available.
The worst feature of this surplus pool of skilled labour was the concept
of ‘Ageism’. Workers soon found that hiring companies where selecting only
younger people (i.e. under 40 in many cases). Often this was a ruse, because at
an earlier age, the new worker could be paid a much lower rate of pay etc. For the next decade the use of the
‘Mainframe’ was seen as an ideal infrastructure.
The use of the ‘mainframe’ however had a short life in reality,
as it disallowed management from taking any decisions that needed a short
completion date for its success. The ‘centralisation’ lobby which had advocated
that centralisation, was the way ahead began to realise that whilst long term
financial planning was possible using the immense power of the ‘mainframe’,
Lack of direct input from line managers charged with the day to day planning of
basic core jobs where being stifled. So
much expertise was needed to run the ‘mainframe’ that line managers felt they
had no input into it as a means of running their own sections. This alienation reduced the incentive to
move anywhere other than within the corporate framework, even if perceived
profits from outside projects were possible.
Rowe (1990) makes good comment on this subject of ‘centralisation’ as
opposed to ‘de-centralisation’ when he says: -
“The difference
between the two involves a tension between efficiency and flexibility. All organisations want to prove efficient
while still remaining flexible, but these two concerns often stand opposed to
each other. Efficiency can be greatly
enhanced by centralisation, for concentrating decision making in the hands of
top executives improves co-ordination, maximises expertise, economises on
managerial overheads, locates responsibility and involves fewer people. Its weakness, however, is that as a strategy
of control it can easily appear authoritarian and inflexible, may not always be
available or appropriate, and can easily prove counter-productive”.
De-centralisation
however, comes out much better with most authors who see it as more flexible,
allowing swifter decisions from those closer to the action: brings the profit
motive to bear on a wider group. Rowe (1990) goes on to add “That
decentralisation created greater motivation, wider democracy and more effective
use of expertise”. The movement within the workplace moved rapidly from ‘dumb
terminal’ input devices to the famous ‘One-per-desk’ whereby every man and his
dog was given a computer linked into a ‘Local Area Network’ (LAN). Workers where expected to cope with this new
technology almost overnight. Poor
training says Copeland (1996) “Created stress and a feeling of inadequacy
amongst the rank and file worker”. With hindsight, we can see that this is only
one cross of many that the worker will have to endure.
Following de-centralisation, the once elite programmers
themselves found their work skills demoted, Braverman (1984) says “The
increasing availability of packaged software and high level languages, has
lowered the status of the programmers. This is now extending to system analysts
and computer managers, as hardware developments permit each manager, to have a
personal computer that, he can manage and program to his personal advantage.” Therefore
one can easily surmise that the workplace did alter in a dramatic way from what
was thought of as unchangeable not to long ago.
However, the 1990s lovingly called the next phase ‘Downsizing’. This new manager-speak name was probably the
result of American corporate research analysts, who saw the self-powering IT
Department with its expensive machines, a cost drain upon corporate
profitability. ‘Downsizing’ was firstly profit orientated. Staff salaries still being a major negative
on any balance sheet. Thus ‘Downsizing’
became yet another excuse for reducing the workforce, added to this was of
course the reduction or even annihilation of the centralised IT
departments. The real reason could well
be that workstations connected to a simple ‘ring’ network (LAN) was a very
cheap alternative, to replacing the huge mainframes, which by the 90s where
showing their age in speed and value. Large (1984) however says “The change
from mainframes to miniframes and then to desktop computers was a result of the
advances in speed and capability of the newer ‘Processor-Chips’ rather then
anything else”.
The value of separate smaller machines also allowed software
upgrades, as and when seemed profitable to increase effectiveness. Added to this was the fact that employees
could be increased, (or more often decreased), according to short-term goals
and profits. The poor employee was once
again a pawn in the corporate game. If
you give an employee a desk computer connected to a ‘ring’ network, you could
also spy on his/her work input and overall efficiency. If you then make the ‘workstations’
available on a non-proprietary basis, (any desk, any computer) you can reduce
to office worker to almost an automaton status, thus the concept of a person,
as a simple cost-effective work unit becomes a reality. These ‘work-units’ can
then be dovetailed into almost any corporate program at a predicted cost within
the project. Its effect upon the worker
must be devastating, but the need to work meant its acceptance as the
norm. Service centres for major
concerns are often built this way, in order to extract the maximum work from the
minimum workforce. It is not surprising
that this sort of work has a high turnover of personnel, and the emergence of
so called computer related diseases is rife.
Perhaps the biggest
changes within the workplace have been firstly, the centralised ‘Service Call
centres’ and ‘Teleworking’.
The ‘Service Call
Centres’ workplace, is nowadays a growth industry? They usually consist of huge
warehouse type room with sometimes dozens and dozens of computer controlled,
(autorouters) telephones dealing with company or product support. The level of
employee education is usually moderate, and thus the rate of pay is low. The
typical service centre in the 1990s (i.e. BTs ‘Enquiries’ centre) Uses overhead
projectors to display the average time of each operators call. Alongside we have what management consider
the ideal (always much less). The employee is therefore driven to work faster
and faster. The final straw was
Zorichak (1999) pers. com. Who points out “That even the new ‘Service Centres’
which at present employ thousands of workers, (albeit female and lowly paid)
could well go overseas to third world countries where costs are even
lower”. The secondary new 20th
century workplace, is now the home, and the term ‘Tele-worker’ has been coined.
The use of a person’s
home as a workplace is relatively new in the UK. In the U.S.A. Martin (1995)
says “That the work extends across the spectrum from routine processing tasks,
to advanced knowledge-intensive work. It must use high speed communication
technology and increasingly cheaper computing power” In the UK, the Xerox
Corporation sees six home workplace improvements that must be made before the
home can be seen as an alternative to the traditional workplace.
1)
It must be adaptive rather then rigid.
2)
It must have lower overhead costs.
3)
It must enhance individual
contributions
4)
It must enhance creativity.
5)
It must be organic and involve people.
6)
It must motivate the production of
productive work.
It is interesting to note
than all these things only mention what the worker can do for the company. However it must be admitted that many
routine copy-typing and database entry jobs could be made using ‘Tele-working’. The likely workforce would be an ex-office
worker at home with young children.
Single unattached people may well find that the social interaction
available within an accepted office framework would not be available to home
workers. (Social isolation etc.). A report from ‘Telecom Australia’ (1993)
supports this statement, that people within a social structure (married) are
usually much happier ‘Tele-working’ than single unattached workers.
A much loved idea is the
belief that our workplace can be set up in any part of the world. The perception by the multinationals is that
we are all part of the ‘Global Village’. Unilever plc. advertising, shows its
workers (One white, one Asian and one African) sitting in the forest happily
communicating via a computer back to
head office. Thus propagating the idea that the workplace is nowadays,
naturally world-wide. UNESCO however,
points out that over two thirds of the worlds population have never seen/used a
common telephone belies this fact. Thus we must assume that the ‘Global
Village’ as a workplace remains a concept of the western world.
Videoconferencing and
purchasing from Internet sources are still in their infancy within the UK. Most UK firms still prefer face to face
meetings and purchasing from known proven sources. No doubt the interface between
technology and the workplace will come even close in the next few years
Technology is still moving forward at a rapid pace, and the average worker has
to learn and apply new skills almost yearly, with little or no incentive to
help them. The threat of dismissal if you don’t upgrade is a real threat. Automation is on the increase and therefore
many workplaces will need less and less workers to service its needs. Any illnesses occurring due to computers or
the office workload is usually seen by management as the workers fault etc, and
any attempt to get financial benefits is vigorously fought. An interesting
aside, is an advert in IT Magazine March 99 which now has books about the
workplace with sub-headings of ‘Legionnella
Virus’, ‘Sick Building Syndrome’ ‘VDUs and illness in the Workplace’ etc. In
conclusion, what can be said about the workplace in the 21st
century? If you compare the workplace
conditions within the last 100 years as asked in this essay, the worker is
hardly any better off now than then.
The ‘master’ drove the late Victorian era workplace directly. The modern workplace is driven by the
computer and the workplace no longer a place of secure employment.
Zorichak (1999) pers.com.
Says “That labour displacement is the major form of distrust attributed to the
introduction of new technology” Surely this statement must be seen to be a
truism, at least this side of the year 2000.
Where work within the IT controlled workplaces are concerned, the
workplace building is usually a large mega-office, with forced temperature
control that remains constant. This
non-variant lulls ones body into a state of stupor after about eight
hours. The workplace still has the two
opposing workforces. (Managers and line workers). The disparity in wage claim percentages
causes endless dissatisfaction.
Workplace personnel are still regarded as ‘work-units’, and removal of
their desks and their small personal space reduces their perceptions of
self-value.
This
essay must conclude finally that the workplace is still unchanged from that of
earlier periods. This essay as well,
can find little or no reason to believe that the workplace will ever change in
the favour of the worker, in the foreseeable future. What on earth will be left
for our future generations within the workplace is difficult to predict. One thing is certain; it will never be the
employee, who, within the modern workplace will ever benefit. The race by our biggest employers will
always ensure that net profits outweigh the security in the workplace of the
employee.
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Martin, W. (1995) The Global Information Society. (Aslib-Gower
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Rowe,C. (1992) People and Chips. (Blackwell Pubs. London.)
ibid,
Braverman,H. (1984) Labour and
Monopoly,Monthly Review Press, N.Y.
ibid,
Taylor,F. (1980) Principles of Scientific Management. London.
Ibid,
Toffler,A. (1981) The Third Way. Pan Books, London.
Forester,T. (1989)
The Information Technology Revolution,(Blackwell,London)
Forester,T. (1990)
Computers in the Human Context. (Blackwell, London)
Zorichak,Z (1999) Pers.
Com. Lecture notes No. 3. (Information Society.)
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