Abstract
Work, as organized in contemporary workplaces and situated in social and political structures, poses a threat to freedom that has been under-appreciated in political theory, especially liberal political theory. The recent revival of republicanism offers an intriguing alternative-can republicanism do any better, with respect to work and freedom? An examination of the workplace through a republican lens does a better job of helping us make sense of the way work threatens freedom–by exposing us to the threat of domination--and it can generate at least three plausible proposals that might render resistance to domination in the workplace more successful: enhanced exit, workplace constitutionalism, and workplace democracy. But this is here where republican political theory leaves us. In order adjudicate between these strategies, as well as identify positive goals to accompany the avoidance of domination, we must turn to democratic theory, and pay closer attention to how workers, as a distinct subset of the population, pursue the project of enhancing and protecting freedom in the workplace. This examination makes clear that a missing concept in neorepublican theory is resistance--workers seeking non- domination through their own initiatives. Once this modification is made, the relative importance of workplace democracy for securing non-domination becomes clearer.
Highlights
Freedom, Work and ResistanceHow can freedom in the realm of work and the workplace be secured? This question is an important one, given the central and dominant role work plays in the lives of so many people
In order adjudicate between these strategies, as well as identify positive goals to accompany the avoidance of domination, we must turn to democratic theory, and pay closer attention to how workers, as a distinct subset of the population, pursue the project of enhancing and protecting freedom in the workplace
The research emphasizes that no single strategy for voice and representation, such as unions or particular workplace democracy schemes or constitutional rules, is likely to be broadly sufficient for meeting the demand for voice, and that satisfying employee demand for voice calls for greater flexibility and innovation in institutional structures to deliver it.xlvii the more empowerment workers experience, the more enthusiastic they become about acquiring more; few things increase the popularity of workplace democracy than its xlviii experience
Summary
This question is an important one, given the central and dominant role work plays in the lives of so many people. It has not attracted a great deal of sustained focus in liberal political theory. The workplace today is a place any practical philosophy of freedom must address. This is true in light of the shift toward greater ‘flexibility’, which has done more to benefit employers than employees and has eroded the potential for collective power to be exercised by employees, increasing the i experience of uncertainty or ‘precarity’ amongst the workforce. Substantive issues regarding the nature and character of work are largely treated as a question of the private, not public realm; concerns regarding work’s meaning and structure are but ii another “preference in the market.”
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