Young People and Work, edited by Robin Price, Paul McDonald, Janis Bailey and Barbara Pini

PostprintPeer reviewe

Modes of incorporation:the inclusion of migrant academics in the UK

This article examines the internationalisation of professions in a qualitative study of migrant academics, drawing on social closure theory to understand how professions respond to the growing numbers of migrants. While studies of closure in professions tend to focus on forms of exclusion based on ascribed characteristics, this article is concerned with how professions include migrants in their ranks. Analysis of interviews with 62 foreign-born academics working in the UK reveals differences in degree of closure towards migrant academics, indicating that inclusion and exclusion are not binary opposites. The article captures degrees of closure in a novel concept – ‘modes of incorporation’ – identifying three inclusion patterns: integration, subordination and marginalisation. ‘Modes of incorporation’ extends closure theory by showing how inclusion is controlled and designed to preserve the status quo, thereby restricting internationalisation

Pricing, prizing and praising in the dating services sector – a conceptual approach

OtherNon peer reviewe

Learning to labour : an evaluation of internships and employability in the ICT sector

The employability of graduates is often reduced to lists of de-contextualised skills that graduates may or may not have and which may or may not translate to prized graduate positions. Recently, internships have become the way in which graduates acquire and demonstrate work-readiness to potential employers. This article examines a particular type of internship in the ICT sector, namely placements incorporated in degree education. The findings suggest that while internships can enhance employability and indeed be a mechanism for accessing permanent jobs, more often, instead of ‘learning to labour’, interns are expected to be productive workers. A mini labour market operates at the undergraduate level that advantages those already possessed of the required soft skills. The emphasis on soft skills signals a shift in the nature of ICT work with attendant implications for education of workers in this sector, revealed by anchoring employability to particular labour process(es).PostprintPeer reviewe

In design we trust: dealing with the innovation imperative

This research was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (Grant number: AH/J005126/1).Preprin

Working in employee-owned companies : the role of economic democracy skills

Employee owned companies (EOCs) are a growing sector of the UK economy and yet research remains divided on their impact and effectiveness. While research has focussed on the links between ownership form and organisational performance, in this paper we investigate whether distinctive ‘economic democracy skills’ can be identified. Our findings reveal that economic democracy skills in EOCs comprise formal business-owner skills - termed skills in economic democracy - and softer socioemotional skills necessary for effective democratic functioning, which we label economic democracy skills. These skills are developed through democracy work by EOCs. The implications of these findings for the sustainable performance of democratically owned firms are discussed.PostprintPeer reviewe

Role-meanings as a critical factor in understanding doctor managers’ identity work and different role identities

This study examines “identity work” among hybrid doctor-managers (DMs) in the Spanish National Health System to make sense of their managerial roles. In particular, the meanings underlying DMs experience of their hybrid role are investigated using a Grounded Theory methodology, exposing distinctions in role-meanings. Our findings provide evidence that using different social sources of comparison (senior managers or clinicians) to construct the meaning of managerial roles leads to different role-meanings and role identities, which are the source of the two established types of DM in the literature, the reluctant and the enthusiast. The contribution is twofold: our findings lead us to theorize DMs’ identity work processes by adding an overlooked role-meaning dimension to identity work; and raise practical reflections for those who wish to develop enthusiast doctor managers.PostprintPeer reviewe

Confusion and collectivism in the ICT sector: Is FLOSS the answer?

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) workers rarely join trade unions. This is usually explained by the individualised nature of work. We examine broader forms of collectivism for these workers, drawing on survey and interview data. Our focus is on social class, attitudes towards unions and professional bodies and participation in the broader ICT community - specifically Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS). The findings reveal absence of formal collective frames of reference or organisation, yet the creativity, autonomy and initiative, central to the identity of ICT workers, may offer opportunities for collectivisation particularly when we look at participation in FLOSS communities