The Social Economy: Working Alternatives in a Globalizing Era. By Hasmet M. Uluorta. New York, NY: Routledge, 2009. 256 pp. ISBN 9780415775939Motivated by what he identifies as a "global crisis of reproduction," Hasmet M. Uluorta explores the emerging role of the social economy in the paradigmatic shiftfrom that of "employment" to that of "work"; a shiftwhich has produced changes in what kinds of labour workers expend and how their labour power is understood. Having become increasingly precarious in the market-driven economy, the conception of labour has changed from rational to reflexive. This shiftis demonstrated in a change in workers' employment motives from purely financially-driven ones toward increasingly socially-conscious motivations, involving both paid and non-paid labour. The growth of the social economy and a changing understanding of labour are the book's central themes: the transition from paid employment-derived identity to an emerging consciousness of being-in-theworld- with-others (discussed further below). Uluorta develops a theoretical framework for conceptualizing these changes, drawing from Marxist philosophical traditions and testing against an original empirical study.Uluorta ultimately suggests that the gradual withdrawal of the state from social programs since the 1970s, in conjunction with the rise of precarious employment as a normative yet disadvantaged status, has prompted both the need for, and desire of, workers to engage in labour differently. Specifically, workers are now seeking out opportunities to use their labour in a more socially meaningful way. This argument is strengthened by an exhaustive quantitative study in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, that demonstrates substantial growth of the social economy. Uluorta outlines three primary aims for this book: providing practical insights to encourage further implementation of alternative working practices; providing an innovative theoretical and empirical framework to analyze this paradigm shift; and providing a useful reference point for future research.Much of the book is spent tracking the paradigmatic shiftfrom "employment" to "work," its historical trajectory and the role of the social economy. The (post-War, Fordist) employment paradigm, spanning from the 1940s to the 1970s, is characterized by two features: (1) the market-driven economy; and (2) government commitment to full employment, both of which featured the domination of Taylorist factory and assembly line labour by a primarily male workforce. This produced what Uluorta calls "rational" employment. As the paid labour market and state sectors underwent major changes in the 1970s, a movement away from "employment" and toward "work" was spurred. Uluorta suggests that this movement consists of an intersection of social, economic, and political changes - namely, global economic restructuring toward a service and knowledge-based economy, the mass entry of women into paid labour, the expansion of working hours, employer demands for an increasingly flexible workforce, and the shiftaway from welfare state principles - which produced an economy and a workforce very different from that of the previous "employment" paradigm. He notes that this shifthas resulted in workers requiring extra support and assistance (such as that offered by social economy organizations), and seeking more meaningful and reflexive labour experiences.The theories and ideas presented in the book are important both scholarly and practically. Uluorta illustrates the value of non-paid work in a predominantly market economy through a unique and comprehensive theory of "economy" and economic activity, ideas that have been similarly approached in feminist literature (see, for example, Waring, 1999). Uluorta comprehensively develops his key concepts throughout the book, weaving together ideas of "employment," "work," and being-in-the-world-with-others, conceptualizations that guide the reader through the history of - and meaning behind - labour in our globalizing era. …
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Aug 15, 2013
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