Organizational loyalty of young chinese people : moral virtues and class habitus

Abstract

Deloitte’s 2016 Millenial Survey suggests that millennials are poor candidates for organizational loyalty since 66 percent of them expect to leave their current employer within the next five years. China is also mentioned with her 65 percent. This dissertation provides evidence that loyalty is not altogether gone from the workplace. Whereas corporate loyalty determined by tenure may be disappearing, a new form of workplace loyalty that is attuned to both macro-level contemporary conditions and individual circumstances is still there. Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics teaches us that our “state of character” is influenced by the kind of society which we live in by means of habit: we “do” or “exercise” virtues or vices in an environment conducive to them. Social science scholars have sought to examine more closely the qualities of character acquired through practical experience within social contexts. We are particularly indebted to Pierre Bourdieu for helping us to better understand the relationship between social arrangements and people’s tendency to appreciate and display certain virtues and vices. His work shows that differences in people’s perceptions, actions, and aspirations stem from their different habitus or dispositions, which reflect and are structured by objective conditions of their social position. Here is an example of objective societal circumstances due to which long-term employment with one company has become an unreasonable and impossible aspiration for many people. Media do not stop reporting layoffs, plant closures and relocations both in China and across the world in response to economic slowdowns and competitive pressures. Temporary employment comprises one-tenth of work worldwide and two-thirds of work in developing countries. Precariat probably accounts for more than half of China’s total urban workforce. Today’s high fluidity of jobs certainly emboldens a great many Chinese millennials to keep looking for their next opportunity, which may even turn out to be a secure one. Another explanation is that the promises of freedom, choice, achievement, and happiness lure these young people into quitting jobs that are not meaningful and fulfilling. This short illustration raises the following questions: In what ways do young Chinese people understand and demonstrate their organizational loyalty? What values hold them to their organizations? Using Bourdieu’s habitus as methodological tool, this dissertation reveals the virtues that young Chinese people perceive as important parts of their moral selves and put into use in their pursuit of economic security and self-fulfillment. Organizational loyalty is regarded as a cultivated disposition that generates virtuous perceptions and actions and is used by individuals as type of moral capital to realize the desired values. My research also sheds light on the uncomfortable yet fundamental aspect of this double pursuit: occupational position and habitus join forces to prevent many young Chinese people from escaping the poverty trap and leading a fulfilling life. As a result, people performing blue-collar jobs, which bring little or no respect and are not personally rewarding, provide alternative definitions of virtuousness and valued rewards in their struggle to improve the moral worth of their occupation and maintain their self-esteem. The current study expands previous research on moral significance of class in organizational context by providing an authentic account of Chinese blue- and white-collar employees’ moral perception of workplace loyalty and moral value of their work. This dissertation also considers former and present experiences that shape, reinforce, or transform these young people’s moral dispositions.