Building capitalism
Historical change and the labour process in the production of built environment
Linda Clarke, Westminster University
Drawing on examples from the construction sector, divergences in the post-war development of
labour differences – in particular between Britain and (West) Germany – in the nature of wage relations
in the post-war era, in the division of labour and in the vocational education and training (VET)
systems will be outlined. This reveals divergent values accorded to labour and distinct institutional
support structures and means of reproducing labour. It is shown how in Britain, since the 1970s, the
progressive development of building labour stalled with continued adherence to traditional trade divisions,
reassertion of managerial prerogative and the decline in direct employment, collective
bargaining and training.
Today, however, in all countries the labour process and VET are in a process of rapid change,
marked by employer disengagement from training, a transformation in employer-employee relations,
and new demands for energy efficiency, digitalisation and prefabrication. A stark contrast is evident
between a labour process where labour is exploited as a commodity and one which builds on the
potential capacity or power of labour.
ALL WELCOME
Linda Clarke is Professor of European Industrial Relations in the Westminster Business School (WBS) and responsible for
a distinct programme of research in the Centre for the Study of the Production of the Built Environment (ProBE). She is on the
Board of the European Centre for Construction Labour Research (CLR), and also a Trustee for London Hazards Centre (LHC).
EMAR SEMINAR SERIES – No 14
Friday, 24 November 2017
6:30pm – 8:30pm
VENUE:
Meeting Room 3,
Finsbury Park Trust FinSpace
225-229 Seven Sisters Rd,
Finsbury Park, London,
N4 2DA
