The impact of organizational change on steelworkers in craft and production occupational groups

Abstract

This article examines the impact of organizational change on different occupational groups in the steel industry. In difficult financial circumstances and resulting pressure to downsize, a move to new forms of team-based working, in combination with staffing reductions, led to differential effects on craft and production occupational groups. Job satisfaction declined as a result of these changes with production workers reporting work intensification, while craft workers joining production teams reported skills under-utilization and reduced commitment to the organization. The existing occupational distribution of knowledge, skills and abilities led to the creation of multi-skilled production teams rather than developing teams of multi-skilled workers.The results clearly demonstrate the importance of understanding the limits imposed on new work arrangements such as teamworking by financial pressures and the occupational structure of the traditional labour process. In particular, the article highlights the significance of occupation in understanding how people experienced the work changes that occurred.