Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capi... more Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capitalist restructuring, although opinion is divided as to the nature of this. Some commentators have suggested that Fordism is being displaced as the dominant mode of production ...
In 1972, the NUM defeated Edward Heath's public‐sector incomes policy, and two years later co... more In 1972, the NUM defeated Edward Heath's public‐sector incomes policy, and two years later contributed to his Government's downfall. The miners' militancy, which exploited the bargaining opportunity created by the return to industry‐wide pay determination and the oil shock of 1973, led to the tripartite agreement Plan for Coal, which appeared to guarantee a future for Britain's coal industry after 17 years of decline. From the return of the Conservatives under Margaret Thatcher in 1979, however, the industry experienced further decline, which accelerated after the defeat of the 1984–85 strike. The demise of the coal industry has inevitably been accompanied by a dramatic reduction in the Union's bargaining power, but the campaign against the colliery closures announced in October 1992 suggests that an obituary for the former ‘vanguard of the labour movement’ would be premature.
The clothing industry is both a quintessential global industry and one that is inescapab... more The clothing industry is both a quintessential global industry and one that is inescapably labour intensive. Despite more and more production shifting to low wage economies in the past decades, there remains a significant amount of clothing manufacturing in high wage economies. This study examines the drivers of change that are forcing restructuring in one such country and the outcomes of such changes for the organization of production. Because the changes have involved treating workers as a resource to be developed rather than a cost, preventing labour turnover has become a crucial component of this strategic repositioning. In presenting the results of a national survey of UK clothing manufacturers we find that high labour turnover rates persist. We discuss the historical background to this phenomenon and current trends, and then explore the principal variables that might explain these trends. We conclude with a discussion of the outcomes facing firms in this industry and comment on why managers resist comprehensive changes in organizational routines and the effort bargain.
Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 2002
This paper reviews two recent projects dealing with training and skill needs in the British cloth... more This paper reviews two recent projects dealing with training and skill needs in the British clothing sector undertaken to implement the government’s policies to increase commitment to vocational training and avoid skill shortages: the People Skills Scoreboard and Skills Foresight for the clothing sector. Despite the dramatic contraction of the sector at the end of the 1990s, clothing enterprises in 2001 were still experiencing chronic recruitment difficulties and skill shortages. Moreover, irrespective of skills gaps in the existing workforce and evidence that training is associated with business success, clothing companies remain reluctant to provide adequate training to meet future skills needs, an attitude that is both a cause and consequence of difficulties in retaining skilled labour.
White‐collar trade unionism has aroused considerable interest among students of industrial relati... more White‐collar trade unionism has aroused considerable interest among students of industrial relations, but relatively little attention has been paid to staff associations, which Crompton noted perform similar functions to trade unions and to which white‐collar workers are partial. At present, white‐collar and partly white‐collar unions account for roughly half of the unions in Britain and some 35 per cent of the membership. The density of white‐collar membership has increased to 40 per cent (over 50 per cent if staff and professional associations are included), compared with 53 per cent for manual workers. White‐collar workers are traditionally thought to be less disposed to join trade unions and, as Bain et al note, “when white collar workers do unionize, they are believed to carry with them certain aspects of the status ideology which affects the behaviour of their unions”. Blackburn and Prandy offer a theoretical framework which may be used to compare the “unionateness” of white‐c...
The importance of management development (MD) has been widely acknowledged in the various reviews... more The importance of management development (MD) has been widely acknowledged in the various reviews of management education and training and has been linked with the attainment of competitive advantage in recent public policy documents (DTI, 1995). There is a broad consensus that the level of training, including that of managers, is inadequate in the UK. The CBI, for example, noted in 1989 that while 24% of top UK managers are graduates, in France and Germany the percentage is more than twice that, and in Japan and the USA, 85% of top managers have degree-level qualifications. The Cannon and Taylor Working Party Reports arising out of the 1992 Institute of Management review of MD, confirmed the need for the effective development of existing managers in order to raise the competitiveness of British industry (Institute of Management, 1994). The challenges of organizational changes, especially contracting out, de-layering and empowerment, make the need for MD particularly acute. The situation is seen by managers to be exacerbated by persistent structural unemployment,
... Community Learning with the Learning and Skills Council Jonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulous... more ... Community Learning with the Learning and Skills Council Jonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulouse Ruth Winterton Eldwick Research Associates Research Report RR428 ... Skills CouncilJonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulouse Ruth Winterton Eldwick Research Associates ...
The views expressed in this report are the authors' and do not necessarily reflect those of the D... more The views expressed in this report are the authors' and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department for Education and Skills.
Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capi... more Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capitalist restructuring, although opinion is divided as to the nature of this. Some commentators have suggested that Fordism is being displaced as the dominant mode of production ...
... Jonathan Winterton (University of Bradford Management Centre) and Ruth Winterton (University ... more ... Jonathan Winterton (University of Bradford Management Centre) and Ruth Winterton (University of Leeds and ... due to that Union's policy of resistance) from the conciliation machinery (Taylor, 1988). ... Burns, A., Newby, M. and Winterton, J. (1985) 'The re-structuring of the British ...
Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capi... more Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capitalist restructuring, although opinion is divided as to the nature of this. Some commentators have suggested that Fordism is being displaced as the dominant mode of production ...
In 1972, the NUM defeated Edward Heath's public‐sector incomes policy, and two years later co... more In 1972, the NUM defeated Edward Heath's public‐sector incomes policy, and two years later contributed to his Government's downfall. The miners' militancy, which exploited the bargaining opportunity created by the return to industry‐wide pay determination and the oil shock of 1973, led to the tripartite agreement Plan for Coal, which appeared to guarantee a future for Britain's coal industry after 17 years of decline. From the return of the Conservatives under Margaret Thatcher in 1979, however, the industry experienced further decline, which accelerated after the defeat of the 1984–85 strike. The demise of the coal industry has inevitably been accompanied by a dramatic reduction in the Union's bargaining power, but the campaign against the colliery closures announced in October 1992 suggests that an obituary for the former ‘vanguard of the labour movement’ would be premature.
The clothing industry is both a quintessential global industry and one that is inescapab... more The clothing industry is both a quintessential global industry and one that is inescapably labour intensive. Despite more and more production shifting to low wage economies in the past decades, there remains a significant amount of clothing manufacturing in high wage economies. This study examines the drivers of change that are forcing restructuring in one such country and the outcomes of such changes for the organization of production. Because the changes have involved treating workers as a resource to be developed rather than a cost, preventing labour turnover has become a crucial component of this strategic repositioning. In presenting the results of a national survey of UK clothing manufacturers we find that high labour turnover rates persist. We discuss the historical background to this phenomenon and current trends, and then explore the principal variables that might explain these trends. We conclude with a discussion of the outcomes facing firms in this industry and comment on why managers resist comprehensive changes in organizational routines and the effort bargain.
Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 2002
This paper reviews two recent projects dealing with training and skill needs in the British cloth... more This paper reviews two recent projects dealing with training and skill needs in the British clothing sector undertaken to implement the government’s policies to increase commitment to vocational training and avoid skill shortages: the People Skills Scoreboard and Skills Foresight for the clothing sector. Despite the dramatic contraction of the sector at the end of the 1990s, clothing enterprises in 2001 were still experiencing chronic recruitment difficulties and skill shortages. Moreover, irrespective of skills gaps in the existing workforce and evidence that training is associated with business success, clothing companies remain reluctant to provide adequate training to meet future skills needs, an attitude that is both a cause and consequence of difficulties in retaining skilled labour.
White‐collar trade unionism has aroused considerable interest among students of industrial relati... more White‐collar trade unionism has aroused considerable interest among students of industrial relations, but relatively little attention has been paid to staff associations, which Crompton noted perform similar functions to trade unions and to which white‐collar workers are partial. At present, white‐collar and partly white‐collar unions account for roughly half of the unions in Britain and some 35 per cent of the membership. The density of white‐collar membership has increased to 40 per cent (over 50 per cent if staff and professional associations are included), compared with 53 per cent for manual workers. White‐collar workers are traditionally thought to be less disposed to join trade unions and, as Bain et al note, “when white collar workers do unionize, they are believed to carry with them certain aspects of the status ideology which affects the behaviour of their unions”. Blackburn and Prandy offer a theoretical framework which may be used to compare the “unionateness” of white‐c...
The importance of management development (MD) has been widely acknowledged in the various reviews... more The importance of management development (MD) has been widely acknowledged in the various reviews of management education and training and has been linked with the attainment of competitive advantage in recent public policy documents (DTI, 1995). There is a broad consensus that the level of training, including that of managers, is inadequate in the UK. The CBI, for example, noted in 1989 that while 24% of top UK managers are graduates, in France and Germany the percentage is more than twice that, and in Japan and the USA, 85% of top managers have degree-level qualifications. The Cannon and Taylor Working Party Reports arising out of the 1992 Institute of Management review of MD, confirmed the need for the effective development of existing managers in order to raise the competitiveness of British industry (Institute of Management, 1994). The challenges of organizational changes, especially contracting out, de-layering and empowerment, make the need for MD particularly acute. The situation is seen by managers to be exacerbated by persistent structural unemployment,
... Community Learning with the Learning and Skills Council Jonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulous... more ... Community Learning with the Learning and Skills Council Jonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulouse Ruth Winterton Eldwick Research Associates Research Report RR428 ... Skills CouncilJonathan Winterton Groupe ESC Toulouse Ruth Winterton Eldwick Research Associates ...
The views expressed in this report are the authors' and do not necessarily reflect those of the D... more The views expressed in this report are the authors' and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department for Education and Skills.
Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capi... more Since the beginning of the 1980s significant academic interest has focused on the process of capitalist restructuring, although opinion is divided as to the nature of this. Some commentators have suggested that Fordism is being displaced as the dominant mode of production ...
... Jonathan Winterton (University of Bradford Management Centre) and Ruth Winterton (University ... more ... Jonathan Winterton (University of Bradford Management Centre) and Ruth Winterton (University of Leeds and ... due to that Union's policy of resistance) from the conciliation machinery (Taylor, 1988). ... Burns, A., Newby, M. and Winterton, J. (1985) 'The re-structuring of the British ...
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Papers by Ruth Winterton