To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: Blue-collar worker.
Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Blue-collar worker'
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'Blue-collar worker.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
Griffin, Mark Eldridge. "A Case Study of Blue-Collar Worker Retirement Investment Decisions." ScholarWorks, 2015. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/319.
Full textAbstract:
The finances of blue-collar workers were the most acutely impacted as these workers lost their jobs during the Great Recession of 2007 through 2009. The literature revealed a minimal understanding of how blue-collar workers allocated funds for their retirement, and what their investments might be when they invested. To address this problem, the current qualitative study addressed (a) how blue-collar workers chose to invest or not invest for retirement and (b) how blue-collar workers diversified their portfolio if they chose to invest. Theoretical foundations of the study were based on regret theory and prospect theory. A nonrandom purposeful sample of 10 blue-collar worker participants answered 19 open-ended questions. Data from these questions were analyzed inductively. Findings revealed that, as participants reached the age of 30, they started to consider investing for their retirement. Participants under the age of 30 were not as likely to invest. Only one person over the age of 30 did not invest for retirement. The factors that contributed to these blue-collar workers' investment decisions for retirement were based on an employer-provided retirement accounts, the fear of running out of money later in life during retirement, and the addition of new family members. One of the most popular retirement investment products for the participant group, which included mechanics, laborers, and material movers, was the U.S. Treasury Bonds. Other popular investments were mutual funds, 401(k)s, and IRAs. These findings may inform researchers who are conducting a study on the investment decisions of blue-collar workers. The findings can also be beneficial for other blue-collar workers by showing them that other blue-collar workers do invest, and by revealing their rationales in doing so.
2
Haxhiu, Agonis, and Max Glasberg. "Belöningssystem för arbetare : En fallstudie på ett industriföretag." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för ekonomistyrning och logistik (ELO), 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-105424.
Full textAbstract:
Bakgrund och problem: Ett välkänt ekonomiskt styrmedel som används av företagsledare för att motivera anställda till att utföra prestationer som ligger i linje med företagets mål är belöningssystem. Belöningssystem fungerar olika i olika branscher och måste anpassas efter typ av verksamhet och anställda. Ett relativt outforskat område är industribranschen, här utförs ofta kärnprocessen av arbetarna på golvet vilket gör det intressant att se hur ett industriföretag jobbar med belöningssystem mot dessa typer av anställda och identifiera kritiska områden för belöningssystemets funktion mot arbetare då detta är ett ostuderat område. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att bidra med ökad förståelse om hur industriföretag jobbar med belöningssystem gentemot arbetare och vad dessa arbetare har för erfarenheter av detta system. Metod: En kvalitativ fallstudie är utförd på företaget Atlas Copco Power Technique Nordic som är verksamma inom industribranschen. Åtta respondenter har intervjuats genom semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Studien har anammat en abduktiv forskningsansats Slutsats: Atlas Copco Power Technique Nordic använder sig av många olika belöningar i olika former för att motivera sina anställda, en kombination av icke-monetära belöningar är den främsta nyckeln för att skapa motivation hos anställda. Det framkommer att de monetära belöningarna exklusive lön inte har betydande påverkan på arbetarnas motivation och vilja att prestera. Det visar sig även att mål och rättvisa har en betydande roll vad gäller arbetarnas positiva inställning till belöningssystemet.Background and problem: A well-known financial instrument used by business leaders to motivate employees to perform in line with the company's goal is the reward system. Reward systems work differently in different industries and must therefore be adapted to the type of business and type of employees in an organization. A relatively unexplored area is the industrial industry. Here the core processes are often performed by the blue-collar workers which makes it interesting to see how an industrial company works with reward systems towards these types of workers and identify critical areas for the reward system's function towards blue-collar workers as this is an unstudied area. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to contribute to an increased understanding of how industrial companies work with reward systems towards blue-collar workers and what experience these workers have of this system. Method: A qualitative case study has been carried out at the company Atlas Copco Power Technique Nordic, which is active in the industrial industry. Eight respondents were interviewed through semi-structured interviews. The study has adopted an abductive research approach Conclusion: Atlas Copco Power Technique Nordic uses many different rewards in different ways to motivate its employees, and the combination of non-monetary rewards is the main key to creating motivation in employees. It appears that the monetary rewards excluding wages have no meaningful effect on blue collar worker’s motivation and desire to perform. It also appears that goalsetting and justice play a significant role in terms of blue collar worker’s positive attitudes towards the reward system.
3
Parker, Rhiannon Jennifer. "A field investigation into the impact of task demands on worker responses in the South African forestry silviculture sector." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1015645.
Full textAbstract:
Background: In South Africa, limited research has focused on the task demands and workers responses associated with forestry silviculture work, particularly pitting and planting. The methods currently in use are manual, but despite our lack of understanding of the existing demands, advances in forestry engineering have resulted in an introduction of semi-mechanised versions of these tasks. This project aimed to compare the task demands of silviculture tasks using the current manual techniques and the more modern, semi-mechanised techniques. Methods: A holistic investigation focused on the worker characteristics of a sample of black male pitters and black female planters from the Kwa-Zulu Natal forestry industry, as well as biomechanical (spinal kinematics and L5/S1 forces), physiological (heart rate, oxygen consumption and energy expenditure) and psychophysical (ratings of perceived exertion and body discomfort) responses associated with manual and semi-mechanised pitting and planting. Results: The pitting task saw significant improvements in the spinal kinematic measures as a result of the increased mechanisation, with eight of the 16 recorded variables decreasing to a lower level of risk classification. Physiologically, the manual task was associated with a mean heart rate of 157 bt.min⁻¹ and absolute energy expenditure of 11.27 kcal.min⁻¹, which were not found to be significantly different to the values of 143 bt.min⁻¹ and 9.8 kcal.min⁻¹ recorded during the semi-mechanised technique. Psychophysical responses indicated that the workers perceived manual pitting to be more physically demanding than the semi-mechanised method. The manual and semi-mechanised planting tasks were, in general, found to be acceptable from a spinal kinematics perspective, with the majority of variables classified as low risk. However, the maximum sagittal angle was reduced by more than 20 degrees as a result of the new equipment. The physiological and psychophysical demands associated with manual planting were found to be within acceptable limits. Conclusion: In terms of pitting, it can tentatively be concluded that the semi-mechanised technique is better than the manual one, based on the biomechanical and psychophysical findings, however physiological demands require further investigation. When considering the planting techniques, the semi-mechanised method showed a slight improvement from the biomechanical perspective, but further physiological and psychophysical investigations are needed.
4
Lee, Ching-man Dorothy. "China blue collar workers : work stress, coping and mental health /." View the Table of Contents & Abstract, 2003. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record/B36783213.
Full text
5
Hardman, Lisa, and mikewood@deakin edu au. "Attitudes and perceptions of workers to sexual harassment." Deakin University. School of Psychology, 2000. http://tux.lib.deakin.edu.au./adt-VDU/public/adt-VDU20051202.090143.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis highlights the importance of workers perceptions of and attitudes to sexual harassment. Past researchers have found that a variety of individual factors (age, gender, gender role, and past experiences of sexual harassment), and organisational factors (gender ratio, sexual harassment policies and the role of employers), correlate with the incidence of sexually harassing behaviours. Two studies presented in this thesis extend this research and were designed to investigate how these factors relate to workers attitudes towards and perceptions of sexual harassment. Study one investigated 176 workers from a large, white-collar organisation. Study two sampled 75 workers from a smaller, blue-collar organisation. By comparing two different workplaces the effect of the organisational climate was investigated. Individuals from Study two experienced more sexual harassment, were more tolerant of sexual harassment and perceived less behaviour as sexual harassment compared with individuals from Study one. The organisational context was found to affect the way in which organisational and individual factors related to workers' attitudes to and their experiences of sexual harassment. However, the factors that influenced workers perceptions of sexual harassment were stable across both studies. Although workers attitudes to and their perceptions of sexual harassment were significantly correlated, they were influenced by different factors. Overall, workers perceptions of sexual harassment were influenced by their attitudes, the behavioural context, and the gender of the victim and perpetrator. In contrast, attitudes to sexual harassment appeared to be more strongly influenced by individual factors, such as age, gender, gender role, past experiences of sexual harassment, and perceptions of managements tolerance of sexual harassment. The broader implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations for future research are suggested.
6
Lee, Ching-man Dorothy, and 李靜敏. "China blue collar workers: work stress, coping and mental health." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2003. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B43895281.
Full text
7
Mahoney, Thomas Gregory. "Workers' compensation claimant fraud investigations : deterring light blue-collar crime." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2015. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/workers-compensation-claimant-fraud-investigations-deterring-light-bluecollar-crime(19c674ec-0405-4631-9e3e-88de8afce7d6).html.
Full textAbstract:
Programme evaluation research examined the criminological and socio-legal issues of a Claimant Fraud Investigation Program (CFIP) operating inside the workers' compensation system. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to evaluate the programmes' choice of deterrence as an instrumental mechanism for achieving compliance. Key aspects of the programme were analysed from both criminological and socio-legal standpoints. Justice and liberty tensions were examined in reference to the programmes' deterrence mechanisms and the perceptions of fourteen participants' were thematically analysed. The study develops an analytically useful concept of light blue-collar crime that could be applied to other organisations and scenarios. The study concluded the programme is not effective and has more of a symbolic than instrumental value. It conducts itself ethically, however, there are problems with its' choice of deterrence and the study indicates there is a low probability for a deterrent effect. Recommendations are made for other actors and institutions to play non-deterrence based roles intended to achieve compliance.
8
Feesey, Terrence James. "An investigation of variables influencing the experience of unemployment for blue collar and white collar workers." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1987. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/26811.
Full textAbstract:
This study was designed to probe the experience of white collar unemployment. Some research results suggest that white collar people have an easier time with unemployment than do blue collar people while other findings suggest the contrary. A questionnaire format instrument was designed to record self-reported changes of an affective and behavioural nature in a sample of 66 white collar and 24 blue collar unemployed adults.
It was hypothesized that on the whole, the blue collar sample would report a more difficult response to unemployment than the white collar sample. It was further hypothesized that after an unspecified period of time the unemployed white collar sample would become passive and depressed.
Twelve variables focusing on learned helplessness, self-esteem, depression, locus of control, social interaction, time structure, personal meaning and perceived measures of health and finances were recorded and intercorrelated in this relationship study. Correlation matrices were constructed for the general sample, the white collar and the blue collar sub-samples. Reliability and validity coefficients of the instrument were calculated on each variable and were found to be acceptable for the purpose of this study. The relationships among the variables supported the notion that generally, the people in the blue collar unemployed sample experienced more difficulty with unemployment than did those people in the white collar sample. The white collar sample subjects did not, however, show a significant disposition toward passivity and depression as a function of time. Instead, the data suggested the presence of a second white collar subgroup who appeared to be experiencing great personal difficulties regardless of the duration of their unemployment. It was suggested that the appearance of a bi-modal white collar sample was the result of the sampling technique, and further that these results may reflect the state of the real world. This position is offered as a possible justification for the contradictory white collar unemployment findings in the past.Education, Faculty of
Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of
Graduate
9
Tolley, Rebecca. "Disco, Tattoos and Tutus: Blue Collar Performances on Wheels." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2012. https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu-works/5739.
Full text
10
Lepine, Irène. "Shortages of skilled blue collar workers in the machining trades in Montreal." Thesis, McGill University, 1987. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=75702.
Full textAbstract:
The objective of this thesis is to examine the evidence of and responses to shortages of skilled blue collar workers in the machining trades--tool and die makers and machinists--in the Montreal metropolitan region. The period studied is 1974 to 1981 and the study focuses on employer behaviour.It was found that data available from government sources documenting the supply and demand for thee occupations are generally inadequate. The research underlines that one of the fundamental difficulties in compiling net supply and demand figures for these occupations is the pinning down of skill levels involved. Employers' definitions of skill are therefore analyzed.
This research indicates that organizational factors appear to influence the recruitment process as well as the choice of adjustment measures. It was found that employers dispose of and use many measures to respond to shortages. Specifically it was found that the adjustment process does not take place only through changes in wage rates. Rather employers will tend to favour adjustment measures that maintain existing arrangements within firms and preserve management discretion.
11
Kroon, Kim. "An investigation of absenteeism amongst blue-collar workers: a mixed methods approach." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1021248.
Full textAbstract:
Absenteeism affects organisations in many different ways, therefore it is essential to investigate absenteeism with the aim of minimising absence levels. The focus of the research was to investigate absenteeism amongst blue-collar workers at a Global Logistics Supplier. The objectives of this research were to identify the main types of absenteeism, to compare the views of blue-collar workers and management on the causes attributed to absenteeism, to describe how absenteeism has been measured and managed, and to make recommendations to the company on ways to minimize absenteeism based on the findings. Quantitative data in the form of monthly absenteeism statistics relating to each leave type, was examined for trends relating to absenteeism levels amongst blue-collar workers at the company. Semi-structured interviews were then carried out with management and blue-collar workers to examine the causes of absenteeism and its management. The results showed that there was a discrepancy between the views of management and blue-collar workers at the company on the perceived causes of absenteeism. On the other hand, both management and the blue-collar workers identified Monday and Friday as the most prevalent days on which employees are absent from the workplace. This finding suggests that more research should be conducted on this trend in blue-collar workers. In exploring how absenteeism is dealt with, management within the company stated that discipline was the most effective way of keeping absenteeism levels low amongst employees. The limitations and delimitations of the research were recognised and further research ideas were given. It was also recommended that managers and supervisors address the workplace issues and identify when a worker’s performance and interpersonal relationships are strained in order to effectively minimise absenteeism. It is also recommended they implement a wellness programme.
12
Kapcala, Jason D. "Lodi a novel /." Morgantown, W. Va. : [West Virginia University Libraries], 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10450/10898.
Full text
13
Ostry, Aleck Samuel. "Psychosocial job strain and coronary heart disease in a cohort of blue collar workers." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1998. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/tape17/PQDD_0026/NQ34603.pdf.
Full text
14
Sofka, Jeri Lynn. "Communication and Gender : Interviews with Blue-collar Women." PDXScholar, 1993. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/4643.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis explores the interactions between women and men who work in highly-skilled blue-collar trades. The aim of this research is to describe women's perceptions and responses to their on-the-job communicative interactions with male co-workers, supervisors and union officials. small focus groups were conducted to produce rich narrative data that was audio recorded for later use by the researcher. The researcher met with the four subjects for three sessions. The interviews lasted three hours each. The researcher also conducted follow-up interviews by phone to clarify subjects' responses. The subjects were provided with an interview schedule of questions prior to the interview. This thesis seeks to identify women's perceptions of male and female differences in communication, perceived problematic communicative interactions and women's responses to perceived differences. This thesis also explores the possible correlation between women's sense of self-esteem and interactions with males on the job. Finally, subjects were interviewed to determine what strategies, if any, are used by women to work more effectively in a predominately male work environment. It was found that this sample of women reported several perceived differences between male and female communication styles and that some differences are problematic. The subjects reported that difficult interactions may result in feelings of anger, frustration, anxiety, hostility or sadness. Finally, the subjects offered several strategies for coping in nontraditional jobs.
15
Bäckhed, Sofia, and Isabella Törmänen. "Arbetstillfredsställelse : En kvantitativ studie om skillnader i arbetstillfredsställelse mellan arbetare och tjänstemän." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för psykologi (PSY), 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-48978.
Full textAbstract:
Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om tjänstemän och arbetare skiljer sig åt i självskattad arbetstillfredsställelse samt att studera om arbetstillfredsställelse kan prediceras utifrån prediktorerna kön, ålder, anställningstid och facklig tillhörighet. Studien utfördes på ett statligt universitet i södra Sverige. Samplet bestod av 80 anställda från fyra avdelningar, ekonomiavdelningen, personalavdelningen, IT-avdelningen och lokal- och serviceavdelningen. Av dessa var 26 arbetare och 54 tjänstemän, baserat på facklig tillhörighet. Studiens mätinstrument bestod av en enkät baserad på Sigvard Rubenowitz test om psykosocial arbetsmiljökartläggning (PAK). Testet mäter arbetstillfredsställelse utifrån subskalorna egenkontroll, stimulans från arbetet, arbetsgemenskap, arbetsledningsklimat och arbetsbelastning. Statistisk prövning med med t-test och multipel regressionsanalys visade en signifikant skillnad mellan arbetare och tjänstemän där tjänstemän upplevde högre egenkontroll, mer stimulans från arbetet och högre arbetsbelastning. Anställningstid var en signifikant prediktor för arbetsbelastning och ålder visade sig vara en signifikant prediktor för arbetsledningsklimat och stimulans från arbetet.The purpose of this study was to examine if blue- and white collar workers differ in self-rated job-satifaction and also to find out if job-satisfacaction can be predicted by gender, age, period of employment and union affiliation. The study was performed at a state university in southern Sweden. The sample consisted of 80 employees from four different departments, the accounting department, the department of human reosurces, the IT department and the service department. Of these were 26 blue collar-workers and 54 white collar-workers based on union affiliation. The questionnaire was about psychosocial work environment (PAK) and is based on the test of Sigvard Rubenowitz. The test measures job-satisfaction by five different scales, self-control, work management, working community, work incentive and work load. Statistical analysis with t-test and multiple regression analysis revealed a significant difference between blue collar workers and white collar workers where white collar-workers felt more work incentive, more self-control and felt a higher work load. The result also revealed that period of employment was a significant predictor for work load and age was a significant predictor for work management and work incentive.
16
Hurtado, Eduardo. "Job Transitioning Experiences of Blue-Collar Employees After Federal Downsizing." ScholarWorks, 2019. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/7014.
Full textAbstract:
Downsizing, realignment, and closure of military bases have forced many low-skilled, blue-collar federal employees into involuntary job loss and job transition. The impact of involuntary job loss on blue-collar workers has been linked to stress and other adverse psychological effects. There is gap in the literature regarding the lived experiences of federal blue-collar employees following downsizing of military bases. The purpose of this qualitative, interpretive phenomenological study was to examine lived experiences of job loss and job transition for federal blue-collar employees following downsizing of military bases. Schlossberg's transition theory provided a conceptual framework for the study. Ten ex-federal blue-collar employees were recruited through purposeful sampling and interviewed using a semistructured interview strategy. The modified Moustakas and Stevick-Coliazzi-Keen method of analysis was used to analyze the data and report emergent themes. The following 7 themes emerged from the data: transition was associated with negative feelings, employer was unprepared for transition process, support provided by employer, emotional support from family and significant others, engaged in other activities, accepted the transition process, and drew motivation from family. The findings from this study may contribute to positive social change by providing important information that human resource managers, industrial/organizational psychologists, and government agencies can use to advocate for the need for developing programs that support civilian job transition services to individuals who are affected by federal downsizing.
17
Almond, Julie M. "Using Focus Groups to Determine Blue-Collar Workers' Perceptions Regarding Dietary Practices and Cancer Prevention." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/31612.
Full textAbstract:
Recent nutrition reports conclude that changing dietary practices is a strategic way to reduce cancer rates in the United States. Nutrition recommendations to decrease risk of cancer include reducing fat intake to 30% of total calories, increasing fiber consumption to 20-30 g/day, and increasing fruit and vegetable consumption to five servings daily. However, recent studies suggest that fruit and vegetable consumption decreases with educational and income levels within a population, and that blue-collar workers tend to consume 38-40% of total calories as fat. It is possible that national campaign efforts to change dietary practices are not reaching educationally and economically challenged populations.
This research identifies the perceptions of blue-collar workers regarding a link between dietary practices and disease prevention. Six focus groups, three of women and three of men were conducted in urban, suburban, and rural Virginia counties. A total of 66 workers participated, and each group was comprised of 8-16 blue-collar workers 35-65 years of age.
Most participants were aware of a link between dietary practices and health. A "healthy person" was described as eating low fat foods, fruits and vegetables, and maintaining a healthy weight. Fatty meat consumption, food processing, and chemical treatment of food were perceived as increasing risk for disease. Few participants were aware of a potential link between diet and cancer. Many contributed risk for cancer to factors beyond their control such as heredity, environmental factors, and the influence of the food industry. Those who had experienced a disease, either themselves or through a loved one expressed a greater sense of urgency to modify their eating habits. Most of those attempting dietary modification were addressing health issues relating to cardiovascular disease. The majority reported consuming less than five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, most often as canned or frozen products.
Participants reported receiving nutrition education from non-interactive sources, such as television, newspapers, magazines, and radio, and interactive sources such as health professionals and community programs. Those that mentioned interactive sources were more likely to elaborate on specific information learned. Television segments, newsletters, and worksite programs were selected as the most preferred ways to receive nutrition education. When asked what topics would be most helpful in a newsletter series, people requested information regarding heart disease more frequently than cancer. Health benefits of fruit and vegetable consumption, menus, and recipes were also mentioned.
The findings suggest that nutrition education efforts concerning cardiovascular disease have penetrated the blue collar population. Community educators need to broaden messages to include current information regarding the potential link between dietary practices and cancer. Furthermore, 35-65 year olds may exhibit more willingness to change dietary habits through nutrition education due to changes in health among themselves or loved ones.Master of Science
18
Anstey, G. M. "The effects of sense of coherence on work stressors and outcomes in blue collar workers." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1989. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/17172.
Full textAbstract:
Bibliography: pages 105-116.The present study investigated the relationships between work stressors, three moderator variables, and a variety of affective, behavioural and health outcomes. More specifically, it was hypothesized that the work stressors would be significantly associated with adverse affective, behavioural and health outcomes. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that personal and situational variables, in the form of the Sense of Coherence (Antonovsky, 1979, 1987), Job Decision Latitude (Karasek, 1979), and Participation in Decision Making, would moderate the relationships between work stressors and a variety of outcomes. The data were obtained from a sample of 111 male, white, blue collar workers at a large chemicals manufacturing organization from a questionnaire compiled for this study, and organizational records. The data were subjected to correlational analysis, supplemented by a form of moderated multiple regression analysis. It was found that the relationships between work stressors and outcome variables were insignificant which led to the conclusions that firstly, a priori specification of stressors may ignore the specificity of persons' appraisals of and responses to stressors, and secondly, consideration must be given to the affective meaning ascribed by subjects to job demands. The moderating effects of the Sense of Coherence, Job Decision Latitude and Participation in Decision Making were inconsistently related to outcome variables, frequently operating in the unexpected direction. It was, however, demonstrated that the main effects of the moderating variables which operated in the expected direction, outweighed the unanticipated negative interaction effects. It was observed that the inclusion of personality variables and situational variables in future studies of occupational stress are necessary, a conclusion which is consistent with more recent findings.
19
Mohamed-Kohler, Yashfa. "Work-family conflict and turnover intention amongst blue-collar workers : does resilience play a role?" Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/10969.
Full textAbstract:
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 47-59).This study examined work-family conflict as a predictor of turnover intention, and the moderating role that resilience may have had on this relationship. Participants were bluecollar workers (N = 136) within the chemical-specialty industry in the Western Cape. Exploratory factor analysis illustrated the unidimensionality of work-family conflict, however there was a strong theoretical argument to treat work-family conflict as separate dimensions for further analysis. Higher levels of strain-based conflict were reported by female blue-collar workers than by male blue-collar workers. Simple regression analysis showed that strain-based conflict explained a significant proportion of the variance in turnover intention; however time-based conflict was found not to predict turnover intention in this model. The results for the moderating effect of resilience on the relationship between strain-based conflict and turnover intention were not significant. Implications for management working in blue-collar environments are discussed.
20
Lindqvist, Madeleine, and Björn Stenholm. "Gör cheferna som de säger? : Kunskapens betydelse för skillnader i uttalad och faktisk interaktion mellan chefer och blue-collar workers respektive knowledge workers." Thesis, Högskolan i Gävle, Avdelningen för ekonomi, 2013. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-14553.
Full textAbstract:
Titel: Gör cheferna som de säger? Kunskapens betydelse för skillnader i uttalad och faktisk interaktion mellan chefer och blue-collar workers respektive knowledge workers. Nivå: Examensarbete i Företagsekonomi, Kandidatnivå, 15 hp Författare: Madeleine Lindqvist och Björn Stenholm Handledare: Per-Arne Wikström Datum: Juni 2013 Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka kunskapens betydelse för skillnader i uttalad och faktisk interaktion mellan chefer och blue-collar workers respektive knowledge workers. Metod: Studien har genomförts med en kvalitativ metod. Semi-strukturerade intervjuer med anställda och chefer på olika företag har använts för att samla in det empiriska materialet. Den teoretiska referensramen har samlats in genom relevant kurslitteratur och vetenskapliga artiklar inom ämnet. Resultat & Slutsats: Slutsatsen som dragits utifrån denna studie är att det inte gått att finna något glapp mellan chefers uttalade och faktiska handlingar. Däremot visar den på att svårigheten med kommunikation kvarstår trots kunskap om interaktion Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Då vi anser att vårt tillvägagångssätt inte kunde stödja den klassiska teorin föreslår vi att samma forskningsfråga studeras med en deltagande metod då vi tror att det skulle ge ett annat resultat. Ett annat förslag är att undersöka varför kommunikationen mellan chefer och anställda inte fungerar trots att båda parter är medvetna om problemet. Uppsatsens bidrag: Studien bidrar till en ökad förståelse för de komplexa situationer som chefer med ledaransvar ställs inför och huruvida deras kunskap inom områden som kommunikation och interaktion kan hjälpa dem i sitt arbete. Nyckelord: Espoused theory, theory-in-use, arbetsmotivation, knowledge workers, blue-collar workers
21
Corrie, Joan, and n/a. "The Management of Financial Resources: Post-Merger Structural Choice in a Blue Collar Union." Griffith University. Griffith Business School, 2007. http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/public/adt-QGU20070724.091823.
Full textAbstract:
Union mergers have occurred since unions were first established. Research on this particular aspect of the union movement is well established in the UK and the US. However, there are few studies of Australian union mergers, despite the fact that many Australian unions took part in a 'merger boom' in the 1980s and 1990s. Two of the few Australian studies, Hocking (1996) and Campling and Michelson (1998), utilised resource dependency and strategic choice theories to ascertain the why and how of union mergers. However, these Australian studies, like their UK and US counterparts, cease with the completion of the merger and, consequently, there is little known of the post-merger operation of unions. How does the integration of the merger partners - with their traditions, structures and financial arrangements - occur? This thesis rectifies the gap in the literature by means of a qualitative, longitudinal study of the merger and post-merger activities of one of the largest and most prominent unions in Australia, the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU), as it moved towards complete amalgamation. The thesis examines the period 1995-2003. Four of the five pre-merger unions faced a serious and continued decline in membership and all faced mounting financial deficits. From 1995, the year the various mergers were completed, membership decline continued and financial resources dwindled further, providing the impetus for further and significant post-merger changes. The analysis demonstrates that, due to a continuing lack of financial resources, the AMWU leadership initiated a budgeting strategy which influenced the actions and changed the opinions of many of the Union's officials, guiding them towards accepting integration of the constituent divisions and near complete amalgamation. The thesis answers the questions of why and how a union moves from a negotiated federated structure towards amalgamation, post merger, with a particular focus on financial decision-making processes.
22
Ali, Hassan. "Individual differences in work behaviour of blue-collar workers : a study of rubber tappers in Malaysia." Thesis, Aston University, 1999. http://publications.aston.ac.uk/10736/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis examines individual differences in work behaviour of rubber tappers. The study examined sex, age, experience and race differences and their interactions with terrain on job performance, absenteeism, and job satisfaction of 1053 rubber tappers. Rubber tappers are unskilled blue-collar workers who essentially do the same type of work and are paid the same rates of pay. There are very few studies that have compared male and female blue-collar workers doing similar jobs in organisational settings. This study is one of the few investigations that examine sex differences in job performance of blue-collar workers doing same job using production data. Studies on age differences in work behaviour encounter numerous methodological difficulties such as high turnover, internal transfers and problems associated with age differences in educational levels. The participation of rubber tappers in this study is envisaged to overcome these difficulties because attrition rates of rubber tappers are low, and internal transfers are non existent. Further, the educational levels of rubber tappers are relatively similar across different age cohorts, as most rubber tappers have little or no education. Two measures of both job performance and absenteeism were derived from payroll records. The two job performance measures were total crop production and attendance. The two absenteeism measures were avoidable and unavoidable absence rates. Overall job satisfaction was determined using a 4-item scale. Significant sex, age, experience and race differences were obtained for job performance, absenteeism and job satisfaction. Significant interactive effects were also obtained for sex, age , experience, race and terrain for job performance and absenteeism. The results are discussed in relation to the abilities and motivation of rubber tappers. The implication of these findings for employee selection and human resource management in rubber estates is discussed.
23
Uken, Charles D. "Planting blue-collar and service-sector churches lessons from Brazil /." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN), 1992. http://www.tren.com.
Full text
24
Haunch, Paul. "The position of blue-collar workers in UNISON : trade union merger and governance in the public services." Thesis, University of Southampton, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.392552.
Full text
25
Brand-Labuschagne, Lelani. "Development and validation of new scales for psychological fitness and work characteristics of blue collar workers / Lelani Brand-Labuschagne." Thesis, North-West University, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/4429.
Full textAbstract:
Over the last decade the focus has shifted to ensure a holistic view of employee well-being in organisations by focusing on both physical and psychological well-being. Previous research suggests that work characteristics and psychological work-related well-being influence both the individual (i.e. health) and organisational outcomes (i.e. commitment, safety, productivity, etc.). Moreover, the increasing importance of focusing on work-related psychological well-being of employees is evident in legislation from around the world. In South Africa the Occupational Health and Safety legislation, spesifically the Construction Regulations, also recognises the importance of the psychological well-being of employees and refers to it as ?psychological fitness?. However, no clear definition or instrument for psychological fitness exists. Similarly, no instrument exist to measure work characteristics of blue-collar workers.
The objectives of this research were 1) to propose a defintion for psychological fitness of blue-collar employees 2) to propose a theoretical framework to better our understanding of psychological fitness 3) to develop a psychological fitness instrument for blue-collar employees that is suitable for the South African context 4) to test the psychometric properties of the newly developed psychological fitness instrument 5) to develop a work characteristics questionnaire for blue-collar mine workers to gain insight into their work experiences, and 6) to evaluate the psychometric properties of the newly developed job demands-resources scale for blue-collar mine workers.
The empirical study consisted of two phases. During the first phase, following an extensive literature review, a definition and theoretical framework for psychological fitness was proposed. Thereafter, a new instrument for measuring psychological fitness was developed and tested. An instrument for measuring the work characteristics of blue-collar mine workers has also been developed to further the understanding of their work experiences. During the second phase, the psychometric properties of the newly developed psychological fitness instrument were tested (i.e. factorial validity, factorial invariance, reliability and external validity; N = 2769). Furthermore, the psychometric properties of the newly developed job demands-resources scale for blue collar workers were also investigated (i.e. factorial validity, reliability and the relationship with theoretically relevant external variables; N = 361).
During the conceptualisation process, the definition of psychological fitness has been proposed based on previous work-related well-being literature. The work-related well-being concepts, distress and eustress were proposed as indicators of psychological fitness. Therefore, psychological fitness was defined as a state in which an employee display high levels of emotional and mental energy and high levels of psychological motivation to be able to work and act safely. The dimensions of burnout and engagement were proposed as possible indicators of psychological fitness and included exhaustion, mental distance, cognitive weariness, vitality and work devotion. Furthermore, the underlying work-related well-being theories and models were identified as the theoretic framework to enable the development of a questionnaire for psychological fitness.
In order to ensure that the low literacy employees understand the meaning of each questionnaire close attention has been paid during the development of items. Firstly, the psychological fitness instrument (SAPFI) for blue-collar employees has been translated into all the official languages of South Africa following a multistage translation process. Secondly, the job demands-resources scale for blue collar mine workers (JDRSM) has been translated into the three most commonly spoken languages (Sesotho, isiXhosa and Setswana) by employees working in this specific mine. During this phase various problematic items were identified and eliminated from both questionnaires using the Rasch measurement model.
The final phase included the validation study where the psychometric properties of both the new instruments were investigated. The SAPFI results provided evidence for factorial validity, factorial invariance, reliability and significant relations with external variables of the distress scale. Although evidence was provided for the factorial validity, reliability and external validity of the eustress scale, factorial invariance could not be confirmed. Furthermore, the JDRSM results provided evidence for the factorial validity, reliability (except for the workload scale) and external validity.
Recommendations for future research were made.Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.
26
Hålldin, Linus, and Grip Natalie Mikaelian. "Skillnaden på arbetstrivsel mellan tjänstemän och kollektivanställda i ett industriföretag." Thesis, Högskolan i Gävle, Avdelningen för arbetshälsovetenskap och psykologi, 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-36490.
Full textAbstract:
Syftet med studien var att undersöka om den upplevda arbetstrivseln skiljer sig åt mellantjänstemän och kollektivanställda i ett industriföretag. Vidare syftade studien på att undersökaom demografiska faktorer påverkar arbetstrivseln samt om dessa har en inverkan påsambandet. Undersökningen utfördes genom en digital enkät där ett missivbrev och QR-kodtill enkäten skickades ut via mail till företaget. Det var totalt 110 respondenter som deltog istudien. Enkäten baserades på “Js Arbetstrivsel” av Hellgren et al. (1999) med ett Cronbach’salfa på 0.79. Resultatet visade att tjänstemän upplever en högre grad av arbetstrivsel änkollektivanställda. Kvinnor upplever en högre grad av arbetstrivsel än män vilket intestämmer överens med tidigare forskning som påvisat motsatsen. Vidare visade resultatet attdet inte fanns några signifikanta interaktionseffekter mellan arbetstrivsel, anställningsformoch demografiska faktorer med undantag för kön. Föreliggande studies resultat om upplevdarbetstrivsel mellan tjänstemän och kollektivanställda stämmer överens med tidigareforskning.Title: The difference in job satisfaction between white-collar and blue-collar workers in anindustrial company. The purpose of the study was to investigate whether the perceived job satisfaction differsbetween white and blue-collar workers in an industrial company. Furthermore, the purposewas also to investigate whether demographic factors affect job satisfaction and whether thesehave an impact on the relationship. The survey was conducted through a digital questionnairewith a missive letter and QR code to the questionnaire that was e-mailed to the company. Atotal of 110 respondents participated in the study. The survey was based on “Js JobSatisfaction” by Hellgren et al. (1999) with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.79. The result showedthat white-collar workers experience a higher degree of job satisfaction than blue-collarworkers. Women experience a higher degree of job satisfaction than men which is notconsistent with previous research that has shown the opposite. In addition, the results showedthat there were no significant interaction effects between job satisfaction, employment formand demographic factors with exception of gender. The results of the present study onperceived job satisfaction between white- and blue-collar workers are consistent with previousstudies.
27
BANASIAK, Sophie. "The unionisation of precarious workers : representations, problematisation and experiences in Swedish blue-collar unions in the construction and hotel-restaurant sectors." Thesis, Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för hälsa, vård och välfärd, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-52700.
Full textAbstract:
From the Polanyian perspective on the double movement of labour commodification and self-protection of Society, the aim of this study was to examine how unionists perceive and problematise precarious employment and what are their practices for unionising and thereby securing precarious workers. A double case study was conducted in the hotel-restaurant and construction sectors in Sweden with the participation of blue-collar unionists with diverse backgrounds and experiences. The results show that precarious work is associated with labour market segmentation, subcontracting and fragmentation of economic organisations, deskilling of work, loss of autonomy and sometimes over-qualification of workers. Perceived difficulties for unionisation are fear, lack of knowledge of precarious workers about their rights, membership cost, status frustration and lack of interactions with other workers. Reported practices for unionising precarious workers consist of dealing with these barriers in order to build trustful relations and empowering workers through education and inclusion in leadership positions. Actions taken to protect and secure precarious workers are strongly interlinked with their unionisation and seem to rest mainly on negotiations. The main conclusions of the study are that precarious work means a loss of control by workers over their work life stemming from labour commodification and flexibilisation due to increased management control and lack of rights and protections surrounding work. The formation of solidarities needed for unionisation is hindered by the detachment of precarious workers from the work community and by inequality regimes. The domination of fear manifests the prevalence of emotions. Therefore, the care and emotional work of unionists is essential for making workers feel confidence. Unions practices tend to lean also, to some extent, towards organising and community building models. Thereby, union agency appears to be able to engage in an interplay with structures to exert some influence on employment and industrial relations.
28
Belton, Leigh Wiley. "Manager characteristics and support for worksite health promotion programs that target women in small, blue-collar worksites." Morgantown, W. Va. : [West Virginia University Libraries], 2001. http://etd.wvu.edu/templates/showETD.cfm?recnum=2249.
Full text
29
Shahid, Shantana. "Setting Up Shop in the Digital Bazaar – Bangladeshi Blue-Collar Service-Providers’ Adoption of a Business Aggregator." Thesis, Malmö universitet, Fakulteten för kultur och samhälle (KS), 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-22501.
Full textAbstract:
This essay explores the early experiences of Bangladeshi blue-collar service workers in digitalising their livelihoods. It is a qualitative study that surveys and interviews service-providers in Dhaka who use the business aggregator platform Sheba.xyz, an online service marketplace, and seeks to understand what brought these self-employed micro-entrepreneurs, previously outside the digital economy, to adopt an ICT-enabled solution. The study is guided by Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory, one of the historically dominant paradigms in the field of communication for development (C4D). The overarching research question is, “Why did blue-collar service-providers in Dhaka adopt and use a digital business aggregator platform?” The aim is to explore what motivated/discouraged and enabled/hindered innovation adoption among a group of users previously marginalised from digital and financial inclusion. The findings suggest that adoption of Sheba.xyz among service-providers was not driven so much by a desire to digitalise one’s business per se, and as a means of mitigating a previous inability to do so. Rather, the factors that emerge from the qualitative data are other perceived relative advantages of the solution – of increase in customers, income, and opportunity. Survey respondents and interviewees also displayed strong affiliation with, and trust in, the platform provider; an alertness for fair treatment; and a drive to prosper, suggesting that they embraced a comprehensive concept and altered life situation where belonging, respect, and self-fulfilment matters, rather than narrowly adopted a new mobile application.
30
Van, der Merwe De Verra Seugnet. "Exploring the possible impact of coaching towards improving the performance of blue-collar workers in a mining environment in the Northern Cape." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/95681.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012.Blue-collar workers should be seen as the most valuable asset of any organization, as they normally constitute the majority of employees within South African companies. Therefor cognisance should be taken to enhance the performance and productivity levels of these employees through coaching. In the past, it seemed, as if the emphasis was more on coaching the higher echelons of employees than on the coaching of blue-collar workers. The current South African crisis within the mining industry has highlighted the need for organisations to adopt a new vision in dealing with blue-collar workers. The integration of coaching into the existing employee assistance frameworks can create the necessary impetus for building sustainable changes within these ranks. An extensive literature review investigated the possibility of coaching blue-collar workers as well as the inclusion of coaching into existing employee assistance programs. It was evident that little research was done on coaching of blue-collar workers. By using a qualitative approach and through exploratory research, coaching sessions were done with the aim of improved performance for these workers. This research outlines a framework for blue-collar coaching that enhances performance and effectiveness of these workers. These improvements in performance could be seen as a catalyst for improved production for mining houses and other corporate businesses. The participants in this research either referred themselves to the employee assistance program (EAP) or they were referred by their manager for a performance or work related problem. This could be an indication that EAPs will have to look at a more integrated approach to incorporate a wider range of services, such as coaching. This research could therefore be a uniquely useful tool for organisations endeavouring to purchase EAPs in future. This research further explored the coachability of blue-collar workers with relation to their level on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as well as exploring their ability to transfer this learning back to their respective places of work. Furthermore recommendations were made in this study for future research, for blue-collar coaches as well as for existing EAP service providers.
31
Costa, Ana Cristina B. "The Effects of Organizational Justice and Exercise on the Relationship between Job Stressors and Employee Health." PDXScholar, 2014. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/1853.
Full textAbstract:
Recent decades have seen an explosion of research centered on understanding the influential impact that job stressors have on employees' subjective well-being, and now more recently, on objective assessments of physical health. Utilizing baseline data from a larger study funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), I conducted a field study on blue-collar employees from two organizations in the construction industry, with the goal of exploring the impact of job stressors on job satisfaction (subjective well-being) and body mass index (objective health), as well as the influence of organizational justice as a moderator and exercise as a mediator in those relationships.
In support of previous research, results show that job stressors (job demands, low skill discretion, and low decision authority) all had significant direct effects on job satisfaction in the expected directions, signifying that the fewer demands and more control one has in their work role, the more satisfied one is. Results also indicate that distributive and procedural justice have significant main effects on job satisfaction, illustrating that higher perceptions of justice are related to higher levels of job satisfaction.
With respect to objective health, the data provides empirical support for the relationship between job control (skill discretion and decision authority) and BMI; however, job demands did not have a significant main effect on BMI. More importantly, the rarely studied relationship between organizational justice and BMI was investigated (Robbins et al., 2012), with results indicating that procedural and distributive justice are important influences on one's BMI level.
Post hoc analyses revealed that distributive and procedural justice are two relevant mediators to consider in the job stressor-job satisfaction relationship, illustrating the importance of considering employees' fairness perceptions with regards to their satisfaction levels. Moreover, exercise was found to be a significant moderator to the relationship between job demands and BMI, as well as the relationship between distributive justice and job satisfaction, shedding light on physical activity within the work and health contexts as a factor that interacts with employees' perceptions of justice and their workload demands to impact their psychological and physical health. Considering the cross-sectional nature of these data, all mediation and moderation results should be interpreted with caution.
With empirical support found for the direct association between job stressors and organizational justice and the outcomes of job satisfaction and BMI, this study has significant implications for researchers and practitioners alike to further expand upon these findings and implement them into organizational practice in support of the Total Worker Health initiative, which aims to promote employee safety and health (Schill & Chosewood, 2013). Results suggest a healthy workforce is the result of the combination of employers transforming the work environment into a more just, transparent and trustworthy place to work, starting with the dynamics between supervisors and their employees, in conjunction with targeted interventions on employees' modifiable behaviors, such as engaging in physical activity and healthier eating habits.
32
Getreuer, Melanie Lynn. ""From the Depths Of The Earth, We, The Men Underground, Will Start Singing": Globalization and Blue-Collar Workers in Post-Communist Poland and Russia." Thesis, Boston College, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/2345/444.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis advisor: Paul T. ChristensenCompares globalization's impact on blue-collar workers in Poland and Russia, asking two major questions: Is conventional wisdom about globalization's impact on labor accurate in the Polish and Russian contexts? What shape has Poland and Russia's reintegration into the globalized system taken since the collapse of communism? Following the collapse of communism from 1989 to 1991, there was a great international effort to reintegrate Poland and Russia (and the whole of the former Soviet Union more generally) into the global system. Now, more than ten years later, there is some doubt about the success of this mission. Clearly, Poland and Russia are in different positions vis a vis the international system. While Poland is a member of NATO and has just joined the EU, Russia continues to struggle to find its place globally. It is part of the CIS and has obserer status in the WTO, but remains outside NATO and is conflicted about its relationship with its neighbors. The two countries in certain respects, then, represent the extremes on a scale of post-communist global reintegration. Labor, in turn, has been an historically important force for establishing and consolidating democracy. Therefore, it warrents scrutiny
Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2004
Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences
Discipline: International Studies
Discipline: College Honors Program
33
De, Koker Rudi Tyrone. "Employee perceptions of downstream outcomes of health promotion: a case study of the clothing and textiles industry in South Africa." Thesis, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11838/3121.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020Employee perceptions of Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) are pivotal for researchers to ascertain the degree of employee satisfaction and as a quality indicator of such an initiative within an organisation. However, there are considerable challenges faced regarding participation in WHP as employees do not trust the confidentiality of the programme. The problem is further exacerbated in that employees experience the wellness programme as a demand by the employer rather than a beneficial resource to the employee. Thus, this research study aimed to determine the effect of workplace health promotion on downstream outcomes within an organisation. To realise the primary research objective, this study looked into the effect of WHP on clothing and textile employee’s (CTE) physical, mental, cognitive and affective outcomes, and social wellbeing. It also explored the effect of the facilitation of preventive interventions. This study evaluated the perceptions of employees on workplace health promotion in the clothing and textile industry in Cape Town. A combination of both qualitative and quantitative research approaches was followed. Quantitative data were collected from 121 CTEs through a survey questionnaire. The qualitative data were collected via interviews amongst managers, clinical staff and WHP program promotors. SPSS was utilised for analysing the quantitative data, and content analysis was conducted for qualitative data. The results of the study mostly pointed to the fact that employees in the clothing and textile industry perceived WHP in a very positive light. Most respondents recognised the benefits of WHP to the organisation which includes reduced healthcare costs in the long term and employee satisfaction, among others. The findings further revealed that the majority of CTEs were either unsure or noticed no effect of WHP on their physical health. However, this statement is contradicted in that 84.3% of respondents stated that they feel physically better due to participation in the WHP service offering. A previous study reported disagreement or indecisiveness to this statement amongst WCWs. This study revealed that there had been a positive impact on absenteeism and psychosocial issues. Most of the CTEs perceived that participation in WHP made the prevention of illnesses financially affordable.
34
Palme, Mårten. "Five empirical studies on income distribution in Sweden." Doctoral thesis, Handelshögskolan i Stockholm, Ekonomisk Statistik (ES), 1993. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hhs:diva-1776.
Full text
35
Blocker, Julia, Janice Lazear, and Lee Ridner. "Tobacco Cessation and Referral to the National Quitline." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2020. https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu-works/7079.
Full textAbstract:
Background: Smoking is the leading cause of preventable deaths in the United States. The rates of smoking remain elevated in rural, low income populations in comparison with the rest of the United States. Thus, prompting the process improvement project of implementing the Ask–Advise–Connect (AAC) method to the national quitline in a nurse practitioner–managed clinic for an automotive manufacturing plant in rural Tennessee. Methods: Ask–Advise–Connect method was added to the current smoking cessation program. The employees who utilized the clinic were assessed for smoking status at each visit and subsequently counseled on cessation. Individuals interested in cessation were connected to the national quitline with the AAC method. Pharmaceutical options and nicotine replacement therapy was also offered at no cost to the employee. Findings: In the 4-month period, the clinic provided 102 tobacco cessation counseling visits to workers who smoke. Twenty-four employees enrolled in the cessation program. The participants reported a cessation rate of 12.5% and 21% had a significant decrease in the number of cigarettes smoked. Of the participants, 12.5% (n = 3) engaged in behavioral counseling with the quitline. Conclusion/application to practice: The addition of the AAC method as part of the smoking cessation program had limited success. As smoking cessation is difficult to achieve, any success greater than 7% can be considered an achievement. The 12.5% cessation rate of the participants was above the national average. Thus, demonstrating the benefit of having a workplace cessation program and incorporating the AAC method to the current smoking cessation program.
36
Kosla, Martin T. "Crafting a Future: How Union Electricians Experience and Respond to Deskilling, Job Degradation, and Redundancy." The Ohio State University, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1305993012.
Full text
37
Pettersson, Martin, and Michael Priba. "Kompetensdiamanten : En kvalitativ studie om kompetensers olika betydelse vid rekrytering." Thesis, Karlstads universitet, Fakulteten för ekonomi, kommunikation och IT, 2012. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kau:diva-16284.
Full textAbstract:
Följande undersökning behandlar ämnet rekrytering med inriktning på kompetensens betydelse vid tillsättning av en tjänst. Vidare redogörs för hur rekryteringsföretag i en mellanstor svensk stad väljer ut individer ur en grupp av arbetssökande och på vilka premisser urvalen sker. Det vill säga om en arbetssökande väljs ut att bli tillsatt för en tjänst på grund av vederbörandes arbetserfarenhet, kunskap och utbildning, eller om det är tack vare dennes personliga egenskaper. Studien ämnar undersöka i vilken utsträckning ansvariga rekryterare värderar arbetssökandes formella kompetenser i förhållande till dess informella kompetenser. Undersökningen kommer också studera den estetiska kompetensens betydelse vid rekrytering. Med andra ord betydelsen av att som sökande klä sig rätt, komma hel och ren till arbetsintervjun. För studien använder vi oss av en kvalitativ metod i form av intervjuer. Dessa intervjuer är baserade på frågor från en upprättad intervjuguide som går att ta del av i slutet av uppsatsen som en bilaga. Dessa frågor resulterar i information från respondenterna som möjliggör för oss att besvara våra frågeställningar som presenteras i inledningen av denna undersökning. I undersökningen framkommer det att rekryterarna framhäver vikten av formell och informell kompetens beroende på vilken typ av tjänst som skall tillsättas. För rekryteringar på kollektivsidan tar man mer hänsyn till vad den sökande besitter för faktiskta kompetenser. Det vill säga vilka direkta kunskaper individen har som går att omsätta i arbetet, till exempel om den sökande kan köra truck och har körkort för detta. Om individen i fråga har akademisk bakgrund eller ej är mindre intressant för dessa jobb och rekryteringsprocesserna sker i regel snabbare än på tjänstemannasidan. Rekryteringar på tjänstemannasidan är istället mer omfattande, komplicerade och tidskrävande. Här läggs tonvikten på den sökandes akademiska bakgrund och arbetserfarenhet. På den formella kompetensen ställs i regel höga krav vid tillsättning av tjänstemän. Studien har visat att det första intrycket av den arbetssökande har betydelse för den ansvarige rekryteraren när de möts för en intervju. En sökande som kommer ordentligt klädd och har förmågan att presentera och framföra sig själv på ett tilltalande sätt har större chanser till en anställning än den individ som inte anstränger nämnvärt.The following study deals with the subject recruitment, focusing on the competence relevant for appointment to a post. Furthermore it describes how the recruitment companies of a medium-sized Swedish city will select individuals from a group of candidates and on which premises the samples occurs. That is, if a job applicant is selected to be hired because of his work experience, knowledge and education, or if it is thanks to his personal qualities. The study intends to examine the extent to which responsible recruiters value the job seekers formal competences in relation to its informal competences. This study will examine the aesthetic competences importance in the recruitment process. In other words, the importance of the candidates to dress properly, be clean and tidy to the interview. For the study, we use a qualitative approach through interviews. These interviews are based on questions from a prepared interview guide that you can take part of at the end of the essay as an appendix. These questions will result in information from the respondents that will enable us to answer our question as mentioned in the introduction to this study. In the survey, it appears that recruiters emphasize the importance of formal and informal skills depending on the type of post to be appointed. When it comes to recruitment of blue-collar workers the recruiters takes more consideration of which actual skills the candidate possess. That is, which direct knowledge the individual have that he’s able to use at work, for example, if the applicant can drive a forklift and has a license to drive it. If the individual in question has an academic background or not is less interesting for these kinds of jobs and the recruitment processes are generally faster than the white-collar worker side. Recruitment at the white-collar side, is more extensive, complicated and time consuming. Here the emphasis is placed on the candidate's academic background and their work experience. When it comes to the formal qualifications there are usually high requirements for the employment of white-collar workers. The study has shown that the first impression of the job applicant is important for the responsible recruiter when they meet for an interview. An applicant that arrives properly dressed and have the ability to present and express himself in an appealing way have a greater chance of employment than the individual who doesn’t make an effort.
38
Frizzell, Rebecca E. "Manufacturing satisfaction with work-family balance: the effects of employee type, technology use, & life role salience." Diss., Kansas State University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/20447.
Full textAbstract:
Doctor of PhilosophyPsychological Sciences
Patrick A. Knight
Satisfaction with work-family balance is a relatively new construct that differs from other work-life constructs in several ways: it is not focused on conflict between work/family domains, does not include cross-domain transfer processes, has no directional implications, and is not multidimensional. The current study has three purposes: 1. Examine work-family balance issues for both blue-collar and white-collar employees, as the literature has focused mainly on white-collar employees. 2. Examine relationship between technology and satisfaction with work-family balance. 3. Assess how role salience influences satisfaction with work-family balance. Participants were recruited and compensated for completing a 60 item online survey via Qualtrics. Blue-collar participants were recruited from manufacturing industries, while no industry was specified for white-collar employees. The sample consisted of 210 participants (105 blue-collar, 105 white-collar). Several checks were included throughout the survey to ensure data quality. Two hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. The first regression revealed that boundary control and autonomy predict satisfaction with work-family balance, while employee type and boundary interruptions do not. Boundary control, family identity, and stress significantly predicted satisfaction with work-family balance in the second regression, while boundary interruptions, work identity, hours worked, and technology use did not. Results indicate white-collar workers have higher satisfaction with work-family balance, lower stress, and lower turnover intentions compared to blue-collar workers. Results also reveal that technology use to complete work outside of work hours is significantly and positively related to stress. Nearly half of participants report feeling expected to utilize technology to complete work outside of work hours. In addition, while it was hypothesized that those higher on family identity would have lower satisfaction with work-family balance when they used technology outside of work hours, worked longer hours, and had more frequent boundary interruptions than would those lower on family identity, the opposite effect was found for each of these variables. Implications of the study include: 1. Organizations may improve employee satisfaction with work-family balance by increasing autonomy and boundary control. 2. Employees may improve satisfaction with work-family balance by taking time to de-stress from work and limiting use of technology to complete work outside of work hours.
39
Valiente, Pablo. "Re-innovating the existing : a study of wireless IS capabilities to support mobile workforces." Doctoral thesis, Handelshögskolan i Stockholm, Information Management (I), 2006. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hhs:diva-486.
Full textAbstract:
The constant pressure to achieve increased efficiency and profitability improvements drives companies to look at new technologies for ways to develop sustainable advantages. At the same time, the breathtakingly rapid technological development of these technologies leads, not surprisingly, to different misconceptions about the impact of IT on businesses. This dissertation aims at clarifying some of these misconceptions by exploring one such technological breakthrough, namely wireless information systems, as used to support mobile workforces. The dissertation analyses three companies devoted to the implementation of wireless information systems, that were confronted with a number of challenges, and investigates how these challenges were met by means of different capability development activities. Evidence from the cases shows that what really matters is not the technology in itself, but how organizations use it. This study suggests that the firms that give the best performance are not necessarily those that implement different breeds of technology, but rather those that are able to learn from the challenges they are confronted with – doing so moreover on repeated occasions by means of interlinked organizational innovation processes. Thus, a piece of advice offered in this dissertation is that it is not always so important to possess all the right capabilities from the beginning, but that one needs to possess the right capabilities to develop new capabilities.Diss. Stockholm : Handelshögskolan, 2007
40
Karlsson, Felicia, Rebecka Schloenzig, and Mathilda Torstensson. "Interpersonella konflikter på arbetsplatsen : En kvantitativ studie om verksamma arbetstagares upplevda interpersonella konflikter." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för psykologi (PSY), 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-80394.
Full textAbstract:
Background: Interpersonal conflict may have a significant impact in organizations since blue collar-workers can spend time and effort on other things then their main duties. This can lead to less profitability for the organizations, that is why this is something worth exploring. Previous studies shows that many factors work together to create interpersonal conflicts between blue collar-workers. The purpose of this study was to examine if interpersonal conflicts has any significant correlation with interpersonal relations, experienced supervisor support, well-being, age and years in the workplace and if there is any gender differences. Methodology: This study was implemented on 67 blue-collar workers (42 men and 25 women) from five different organizations in the south of Sweden. To examine the result this study used a survey. The survey had three demographic questions: gender, age and years in the workplace. Four validated questionnaires was used as instruments to measure if interpersonal conflicts had any correlation with the examined variables: Interpersonal Conflict at Work Scale (ICAWS), Interpersonal Conflict in Organization Scale (ICOS), Social Support Scale (SSS) and Job-related Affective Well-Being Scale (JAWS) Result: The result showed that interpersonal conflicts had a significant correlation with interpersonal relationships, experienced supervisor support, well-being and years at workplace. The result showed that interpersonal conflicts had no significant correlation with age. The gender differences were further tested in the variables but did not find any statistically significant differences. Conclusion: The result of this study confirms that interpersonal conflicts correlates with interpersonal relations, experienced supervisor support, well-being and years in the workspace.Bakgrund: Interpersonella konflikter kan ha stor betydelse för en organisation eftersom verksamma arbetstagare tid och prestation kan läggas på annat och ta fokus från deras huvudsakliga arbetsuppgifter. Detta kan i sin tur leda till lägre lönsamhet för organisationer och är därför intressant att undersöka. Tidigare studier har visat att det finns många faktorer som samspelar för att en interpersonell konflikt ska uppstå verksamma arbetstagare emellan. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om interpersonella konflikter har ett samband med interpersonella relationer, upplevt ledarskapsstöd, välmående, ålder och år på arbetsplatsen samt om det finns en könsskillnad. Metod: Studien genomfördes på 67 verksamma arbetstagare (män 42 och kvinnor 25) från fem olika företag i en mindre stad i södra Sverige. Studien använde tre demografiska frågor: kön, ålder och år på arbetsplatsen. Fyra validerade test användes som mätinstrument för att undersöka om interpersonella konflikter hade ett samband med ovanstående faktorer, Interpersonal Conflict at Work Scale (ICAWS), Interpersonal Conflict in Organization Scale (ICOS), Social Support Scale (SSS) och Job-related Affective Well-Being Scale (JAWS). Resultat: Resultatet visade att interpersonella konflikter har ett statistiskt signifikant samband med interpersonella relationer, upplevt ledarskapsstöd, välmående och år på arbetsplatsen. Inget statistiskt signifikant samband hittades mellan interpersonella konflikter och ålder. Vidare testades ifall det fanns några könsskillnader inom de olika faktorerna, men inga statistiskt signifikanta könsskillnader hittades. Slutsats: Resultatet bekräftar att interpersonella konflikter har ett samband med interpersonella relationer, upplevt ledarskapsstöd, välmående och år på arbetsplatsen
41
Talai, Jonas Jones. "Change initiative : How resistance & obstacles can affect organizations: From a blue-collar and manager perspective: a case study of a manufacturing company in Sweden." Thesis, Karlstads universitet, Fakulteten för hälsa, natur- och teknikvetenskap (from 2013), 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kau:diva-44404.
Full textAbstract:
The global market is very competitive due to fast changes in complex business environments and to survive or expand the business, organizations must embrace organizational change. However, adapting to change is not always easy, where organizations may experience obstacles and resistance along the way. Organizations may also experience that it is very hard to implement lean successfully, due to lack of know-how but especially resistance. The traditional way is to blame the blue-collars for the disturbing circumstances but in modern times the wind has changed its course where the managers themselves can be a contributor for implementation failures. Therefore, the aim of the research is to investigate what advantages that can be obtained by implementing a certain change initiative. Furthermore, to determine where resistance occurs and how to eliminate or reduce them. The change initiative in this research is implemented by conducting a case study in a Small Medium Enterprise (SMEs), where the main goal is to reduce the changeover time of a machine, by finding improvement suggestions using the Single Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) methodology. The results generated several improvement opportunities and gave an indication that there is a huge potential for improvements and elimination of waste during a typical changeover. The positive outcomes of implementing these improvement opportunities could theoretically reduce the changeover time, which directly reduces the overall cost but higher responsiveness, flexibility and efficiency can also be obtained. However, the evidence tells a story where the organization could experience obstacles during the implementation of the improvement suggestions, due to several factors. Surprisingly, the evidence points out that one root problem for resistance is difficulties of describing the underlying reason of the change initiative to the blue-collars. Moreover, there is in fact resistance and lack of awareness of the SMED methodology among the blue-collars and the managers, where fear of the unknown is another root problem for resistance.
42
Nguyen, Thi hai yen. "Multiple exposures and co-exposures to chemical neurotoxic agents and intense physical constraints among male blue-collar workers in the agriculture, manufacturing, and construction sectors in France Multiple Exposures and Co-exposures to Occupational Hazards among Agricultural Workers: A Systematic Review of Observational Studies." Thesis, Angers, 2017. http://www.theses.fr/2017ANGE0065.
Full textAbstract:
Les effets délétères sur la santé de certaines expositions professionnelles, prises indépendamment, ont été observés dans un large nombre d’études. Pourtant, la prévalence et l'impact de multi-exposition ou co-exposition à des diverses nuisances ont plus rarement été explorée, malgré le caractère ubiquitaire de nombreuses nuisances. Par conséquent, l’étude de multi-exposition/co-exposition dans le cadre professionnel est considérée comme un enjeu majeur de la recherche épidémiologique en santé au travail. Une revue systématique de la littérature concernant le secteur de l’agriculture a été réalisé en s'appuyant sur le titre, le résumé, et le texte intégral des 36.404 articles originaux grâce à 5 bases de données reconnues et 2 sources de données nord-américaines complémentaires. Les résultats des 15 articles inclus suggèrent que l’exposition aux multiples chimiques est significativement associée au risque de maladies respiratoires, de cancers, de dommages sur l’ADN et les cytogénétiques. L’exposition aux multiples physiques a été associée à une augmentation du risque de perte d'audition, tandis que la co-exposition aux facteurs physiques et biomécaniques a été associée à un risque accru de troubles musculo-squelettiques. Aucune étude n'a exploré la co-exposition professionnelle à des facteurs chimiques et physiques, ainsi qu'à la co-exposition professionnelle à des facteurs chimiques et biomécaniques. Les résultats de cette revue de la littérature indiquent la nécessité l’évaluer la prévalence de l’exposition professionnel à des multiples nuisances en France. Les multiple/co-expositions aux agents neurotoxiques chimiques(ANCs) et aux contraintes physiques intenses (CPIs) ont ainsi été analysées chez 5587 hommes ouvriers français des secteurs de l'agriculture, de l’industrie manufacturière, et de la construction à partir de l’enquête nationale transversale SUMER 2010. Environ 6% des ouvriers étaient co-exposés aux ANCs et CPIs dans les trois secteurs étudiés (p = 0,29). La multi-exposition aux CPIs était plus nettement plus fréquente (35%, p <0,001) que la multi-exposition aux ANCs (2%, p <0,001) chez les hommes de trois secteurs. Ces recherches mettent en évidence la nécessité de conduire davantage d’études liées à multi-exposition/coexposition professionnelle. Elles seront essentielles pour améliorer la sécurité au travail et permettre la surveillance et la prévention risques et des maladies professionnellesA wide range of studies has demonstrated the relationships between diverse types of occupational exposures,taken independently, and adverse health outcomes. Yet, the prevalence and impact of multiple occupational exposures or co-exposures have rarely been explored despite the ubiquity of numerous hazards. Therefore, multiple occupational exposures/co-exposures and their impact on health are considered as a major challenge of epidemiologic research inthe occupational health and safety area. A systematic review concerning the agriculture sector was carried out based on the titles, abstracts and fulltexts screening of 36,404 initial articles from 5 well-known databases and 2 North American complementary sources. The findings from the 15 papers finally included suggested that multiple chemical exposures were significantly associated with an increased risk of respiratory diseases, cancers, DNA and cytogenetic damages. Multiple physical exposures were shown to increase the risk of hearing loss while co-exposures to physical and biomechanical hazardswere associated with an increased risk of musculoskeletal disorders. However, no studies included in the systematic review explored either occupational co-exposures to both physical and chemical factors or occupational co-exposures to biomechanical and chemical factors.The results described in the systematic review raised the necessity to conduct further studies multipleoccupational exposures and co-exposures among workers. Therefore, multiple occupational exposures and coexposures’ prevalences to chemical neurotoxic agents (CNAs) and intense physical constraints (IPCs) were examined among 5,587 French male blue-collar workers (BCWs) in the agriculture, manufacturing, and construction sectors based on the cross-sectional and national SUMER 2010 survey. About 6% of male BCWs were co-exposed to IPCs andCNAs in these three sectors (p=0.29). Multiple exposures to IPCs was predominantly observed (35%, p <0.001), while multiple exposures to CNAs was much lower (2%, p <0.001) among male BCWs in three sectors.The findings highlight the necessity to carry out further studies on multiple occupational exposures/coexposures to diverse hazards and their impact on workers’ health. These further researches are required to improve occupational safety and the efficiency of health care surveillance and occupational disease prevention
43
Bassey-Duke, Elizabeth Misan. "An ergonomics intervention study into the physiological, perceptual and productivity effects of three citrus harvesting bag designs in the Eastern Cape of South Africa : a combined laboratory and field approach." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1018908.
Full textAbstract:
Background: Agriculture plays a vital role in the economy of any industrially developing country, including South Africa. In the Eastern Cape of South Africa citrus farming is a significant contributor to the local economy (Johnson et al., 2005). The harvesting phase of citrus farming is performed manually and exposes workers to physical risks, which can lead to the development of musculoskeletal disorders. In particular, the standard harvesting bag comprises of a single shoulder strap and promotes asymmetrical load carriage which results in shoulder and lower back pain complaints. The current study compared the physiological (EMG), perceptual (RPE), usability (PUEU) and productivity effects of two new harvesting bag designs (a hip belt and a backpack bag design) to the standard harvesting bag design. This was performed in a laboratory as well as a field setting. Methods (Laboratory phase): 36 participants (12 males and 24 females) were assigned to one worker group. The “tall ladder worker” group was comprised of only males and the “step ladder worker” and “ground worker” group of females. Each participant was required to simulate a citrus harvesting task while utilizing each of the bag designs on different days. On each day/test session, participants performed three harvesting cycles. Muscle activity was measured throughout the entire testing session and RPE were recorded at the end of each cycle. Results (Laboratory phase): The EMG and RPE results indicate that the backpack design was the most ideal design to reduce asymmetry, while the standard harvesting bag design was the worst. Although not significant, there was greater muscle asymmetry (p=0.109) and a significantly higher perceived exertion when using the standard bag (p=0.0004), in comparison to using the backpack. Methods (Field phase): 17 Xhosa-speaking citrus harvesters (6 females and 11 males) participated in this study. Each harvester worked with one of the three bag designs on a different day. Productivity of each worker was assessed every hour by recording the number of bags filled with fruit and at the end of the shift. A Perceived Usefulness & Ease of Use questionnaire was presented to each participant to obtain feedback on worker acceptance to the new bag designs. Results (Field phase): A general trend in support of the hip belt bag design over the other two bag designs were found, even within the different worker demographic groups (age, sex and worker experience). The workers perceived less exertion (7.98 ± 1.86) and were more productive (9.90 ± 2.11 bags/hour) when using the hip belt design; they also found this bag the most useful (1.02 ± 0.09) and easy to use (1.07 ± 0.25). In contrast, the backpack bag design had significantly poorer responses when compared to the other two bag designs and this was evident in all the dependent variables assessed (RPE, productivity and PUEU). Conclusion: The results from the laboratory phase supported the expectation that the backpack bag design reduces asymmetry and hence, is more suitable than the standard harvesting bag. However, results from the field show that the hip belt bag design was the most preferred and the backpack was the least preferred. Bao & Shahnavaz (1989) highlight the need for ergonomics researcher to convey laboratory findings into the field context. However, as shown by the current study, there are numerous challenges associated with field work, making it difficult for laboratory findings to be successfully conveyed to the field. Limitations and Recommendations: For the laboratory phase of the project, no biomechanical and cardiovascular responses were assessed. However, for a holistic approach, these variables should be considered in future studies. Due to high variability from one harvesting cycle to another, more than three harvesting cycles should also be performed to accurately replicate the harvesting process as done in the field over extended durations of time. For the field phase, data should be collected from more than one citrus farm and thus a larger sample size could be obtained. This would improve the validity of the study. In addition to this, data should be collected for a full working day, especially if environmental conditions are not a hindrance, as well as for a whole season, since workloads vary, depending on the time of the harvesting season.Name on Graduation Programme: Bassey-Duke, Elizabeth Missan
44
Atasoy, Tuba. "A Comparative Study On Job Satisfaction In Large And Small Size Enterprises." Master's thesis, METU, 2004. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12605305/index.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis aims to find out the job satisfaction level in large and small enterprises by founding on Locke&rsquos model and to compare job satisfaction levels. Although, Locke&rsquo
s job satisfaction model includes many dimensions, it is lack of some variables, which are very important for sociology. In order to fill this gap, demographical information and status in the work place have ben added within variables. Consequently, job satisfaction levels of workers who work in large and small size enterprises in different status (white collar, blue collar) and who comes from different demographical structures have been determined
additionally, their expectations from work and their point of views about the work have been tried to understand. In order to reach these findings, a field research, which took approximately 10 months, has been conducted in a large and a small enterprise. Field research has been conducted by applying questionnaire for 64 questions to 85 people. However, some of important information about the work place has been found as consequence of depth interviews done with respondents. While social rights in large enterprises and image of the enterprise effect the job satisfaction positively, in small enterprises social environment and behavior to the workers are important. To get homogeneous answers are easy in large enterprises
because, changes like promotion, increase of salaries are done within a system and formal
which is permanent is not people but the works. However, answers and results are heterogeneous in small enterprises because works are done within informal relations by attaching to people. Whatever the size of the enterprise, as qualifications of the work and educational level increase, as expectations increase and to get satisfaction from the work becomes difficult. On the other hand, most difficult part of conducting this research in Turkey is that workers pay attention to the workplaces where they can get their total salary at right time and where they feel secure, instead of job satisfaction and most of time they think that get satisfaction from work is luxury. Field research was not only of help to this research, but also provide workers who participated to the research to think about their job satisfactions.
45
Giessner, Sophie Muriel [Verfasser], Werner [Akademischer Betreuer] Widuckel, and Lutz [Gutachter] Bellmann. "What are the factors influencing retirement in the Federal Republic of Germany? An empirical analysis of the motivational causes of the early exit of white- and blue-collar workers from the German labour force / Sophie Muriel Giessner ; Gutachter: Lutz Bellmann ; Betreuer: Werner Widuckel." Erlangen : Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), 2018. http://d-nb.info/1177368730/34.
Full text
46
Bohanan, Ronal L. ""This Fundamental Lack": Stories." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2016. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc862808/.
Full textAbstract:
This short story collection includes five original works of fiction, three of which make up a trilogy titled "The World Drops Beneath You," which follows the life of James McClellan from 1969 in Texas until roughly 2009, when he is struggling to care for his wife, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease. One of the two remaining stories, "She Loved Him When He Looked Like Elvis," prominently features James McClellan's parents and is set approximately eight years before the start of the trilogy. Each of the stories is concerned with blue-collar families trying to make their way in postindustrial America and the forces that buffet them, including some brought on by the choices they make.
47
Primerano, Julie. "Quand les rapports sociaux de classes prennent corps : catégorisations et expériences des « cancers du travail » en Lorraine." Thesis, Université de Lorraine, 2019. http://docnum.univ-lorraine.fr/ulprive/DDOC_T_2019_0247_PRIMERANO.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
Le cadre professionnel constitue, aujourd’hui encore, un espace d’engagement des corps parfois délétère, notamment pour les plus précaires. Cette thèse propose d’explorer l’une de ses conséquences, peu visible dans le corps social : le “cancer professionnelˮ. Etudié dans ses versants institutionnel et “profaneˮ , ses différentes logiques de catégorisations sont mobilisées comme des analyseurs des corps, des corporéités et des rapports sociaux de classes. Plusieurs niveaux d’analyse sont ainsi convoqués : celui, diachronique, de son élaboration et de ses ajustements et ceux, synchroniques, des malades soupçonnés, à un moment donné, d’être atteints d’un cancer d’origine professionnelle, de leur entourage (conjoint.e et plus largement réseaux relationnels territoriaux à travers lesquels les malades constituent des savoirs concernant les sites exposant à des substances cancérogènes), des associations et des syndicats, des agents administratifs et enfin des médecins. Le travail méthodologique repose sur des entretiens avec des malades et/ou leurs ayants-droit, des agents administratifs, des médecins, des acteurs associatifs et syndicaux ainsi que des observations de consultations, de séances du comité régional de reconnaissance des maladies professionnelles et de permanences associatives. Cette thèse s’inscrit dans la sociologie des cancers professionnels déjà ouverte par les travaux pionniers d’Annie Thébaud-Mony dès les années 1990 (Thébaud-Mony, 1991, 2003, 2006, etc.), complétés notamment par les travaux menés par les chercheur.se.s associé.e.s au GISCOP93 (Marchand, 2016 et 2018 ; Paiva, 2016, etc.) en même temps qu’elle contribue à la sociologie des « corps ouvriers ». S'agissant du premier champ, elle montre comment la catégorie se reconfigure à mesure de la traversée des espaces médicaux, administratifs, militants et domestiques. Des jeux sur ses bornes se déploient dans ces espaces qui passent notamment par une revendication victimaire ainsi que par une individualisation du risque cancérogène et du vécu de la maladie, menant l’(ex) travailleur à subir une triple injonction à être à la fois un bon ouvrier, un bon malade et une bonne victime. S'agissant du second champ, elle montre comment le travail passe les frontières de la peau des ouvriers selon des modalités particulières. Les ouvriers enquêtés semblent résister à l'engagement de l'entièreté de leur corps au travail mais l'expérience de la maladie ne s'inscrit pas dans une grammaire de classes nette. Ainsi, si le collectif ouvrier peut parfois faire ressource, il peine à faire sens dans une expérience qui s'individualise à mesure que la relation salariale se transforme et que la rhétorique de classes perd de son audience. Pour autant, c’est parfois la catégorie, souvent saisie par le biais des médecins et des corps, qui va (r)éveiller l’identification à une condition précaire, suggérant une imbrication complexe des rapports sociaux de domination autour de cet objetThe professional setting still constitutes a space in which bodily engagement may have deleterious effects. This is particularly true for the most precarious workers. This thesis proposes to explore one of its consequences, that of occupational cancer. Occupational cancer socially relatively invisible socially, we will study its repercussions both on an institutional and on a profane level. The different logics which underlie the categorization are mobilized to found an analysis of the workers’ bodies, their bodily practice and the class relations in which they are engaged. Several levels of analysis are mobilized: a diachronic analysis of the category and the way in which it is elaborated and evolves and a synchronic analysis of the patients suspected, at a given moment, to be suffering from an occupational cancer. This latter also involves; the patient’s entourage (spouse and more broadly the territorial relational networks by which the patients obtain knowledge about the sites on which workers are exposed to toxic substances), associations and trade unions, administrative agents and doctors. My methodology is based on interviews with patients and/or their beneficiaries, administrative agents, doctors, and members of associations and trade-unions. I have also observed medical consultations, meetings of regional decisional bodies for the diagnosis of occupational illness and the open office hours and consultations of associations devoted to the recognition of occupational illness.This thesis is a contribution to the sociology of occupational cancers opened by the pioneering work of Annie Thébaud-Mony during the 1990s (Thébaud-Mony, 1991, 2003, 2006, etc.), and developed by researchers at the GISCOP93 laboratory (in particular: Anne Marchand, 2016 and 2018, Michelle Paiva, 2016, etc.) At the same time it is a contribution to the sociology of "blue-collar workers' bodies". Regarding the first field, I show how the category is reconfigured as it passes through medical, administrative, militant and domestic spaces. Its boundaries are played out in these spaces via the steps in the process of recognition, which include the victim’s claim, an individualization of the carcinogenic risk and the experience of illness. The (ex) worker comes to suffer from a triple injunction to be at once a good worker, a good patient and a good victim. In so far as the second field is concerned, I show how the work passes the boundaries of worker’s skin in a particular manner. The workers studied seem to resist committing their entire body to their work and its sequels, though the experience of illness cannot be seen to enter into a distinct class-inspired grammar. Thus, if the workers' collectives can sometimes serve as a resource, they have difficulty making sense of an experience that becomes individualized as work relationships are transformed and class rhetoric loses its public. However, it is sometimes the category, often operationalized by doctors and the workers’ bodies, that awakens identification to a precarious condition, suggesting a complex interweaving of power relationships with relation to this object
48
Kuo-Pin, Wu, and 吳國斌. "A Case Study of the Competency of “Blue-collar” Worker in a Food Company." Thesis, 2014. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/89145787914794944352.
Full textAbstract:
碩士國立中正大學
企業管理研究所
102
After searching the literature on competency, the researcher found that most literature studied managers’ competencies. The studies of blue-collar workers’ competencies are just few. However, the percentage of blue-collar workers in a company is actually the largest and is also the key to successful execution. The aim of this study is to develop “the key competencies of blue-collar workers with superior performance”. Based on the annual performance scores, the case studied company selected the best and worst groups of performance to conduct the behavioral event interview. Each of these selected blue-collar workers expounded three good and three bad work experiences from his/her work to obtain his/her competencies. After inferring the competence of the superior performance blue-collar workers and the inferior performance blue-collar workers, the researcher subtracted the shared competencies of superior performance blue-collar and the inferior performance operators from the competencies of the superior performance blue-collar workers. The obtained is the competencies the case studies company expects the blue-collar worker to have, including the initiative of implicit achievement motivation and the achievement orientation of implicit achievement motivation and the customer service orientation of implicit affiliation motivation. Next, the performance appraisal items of 3 food companies were used to support the results of the study.
49
Chi, Tang Liao Li, and 湯廖立琦. "Leisure Constraints, Leisure Participation and Leisure Satisfaction of Blue Collar Foreign Worker ─A Case Study on Caregivers of Chiayi County." Thesis, 2014. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/u6fdp7.
Full textAbstract:
碩士稻江科技暨管理學院
休閒遊憩與旅運管理學系碩士班
102
The purpose of this research is to probe into the leisure situation, leisure constraints of the Indonesia common nursing laborers in Taiwan and their satisfaction about the leisure situation. The research takes 4234 Indonesia caregivers in Chiayi County till the end of May 2014 as the study objects, and employs Stratified Sampling to conduct questionnaire survey. A total 500 questionnaires are delivered and 350 valid ones are recovered, with a recovery rate 70%. According to the actual recovery material of the survey, the research will analyze the material with statistical methods like Descriptive Statistics, T Test, Single Factor Variation Analysis and Structural Equation Model to know about the leisure situation, leisure obstruction of the foreign common laborers, and their satisfaction about the leisure situation, and the relationship between the three points. The result shows that: 1. the foreign common laborers are relatively inactive in participating leisure activities; 2. leisure constraints of the foreign common laborers are on the medium level; 3. satisfaction about the leisure situation is on the medium level; 4. the two potential variations leisure participation and leisure obstruction are obviously influencing satisfaction about the leisure situation; 5. leisure participation is positively influencing the leisure satisfaction; 6. leisure constraints are negatively influencing the leisure satisfaction; 7. prediction efficiency of leisure participation to leisure satisfaction is greater than leisure constraints (0.877>0.661). Given the results mentioned above, the employers are suggested to further understand laborers of that background, encourage them to participate in leisure activities and pay close attention to their working time and mind and body condition, thus to improve their leisure participation and satisfaction, which will lead to a promotion in body and mind condition. Suitable activity facility and site should be chosen through understanding their best favorite leisure activities and only in this way, their leisure participation and satisfaction can really be improved.
50
Cochrane, Cheryl Louise. "Treatment of stress in black blue-collar workers." Thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10210/10354.
Full textAbstract:
M.A. (Psychology)Interest has grown over the past decade in the study of stress and more recently in the development and Implement at Ion of primary prevention programmes for various forms of stress related illnesses. Such programmes hold great promise for reducing , illness reactions in combination with, or, as an alternative to pharmacological medication. None of these programmes have been conducted amongst a sample of South African black blue-collar workers and it is important that these procedures are tested in order to evaluate their efficacy for specific cultural contexts. In this dissertation, an extensive review of the literature on the various models of stress is included as well as a proposed model for South African blue-collar workers. The stressors inherent in the lives of the sample population are also discussed. The sample consisted of sixty six male black blue-collar workers between the ages of twenty five and fifty five employed in the milling industry. Over a period of six weeks the effects on work-related stress of five different treatment regimes consisting of the following are evaluated: just lying down, relaxation tape, placebo, Royl 6 (vitamin B) and Panado (paracetamol). sUbjects completed the Job-related tension questionnaire and the Anxiety-stress questionnaire upon commencement of treatment and two weeks after' they had concluded treatment. An analysis of variance and a multivariate analysis of variance showed that there was no significant difference in the levels of work-related stress at the post-measurement stage of assessment.' This indicates that none of the five treatment regimes had any affect on the work-related stress levels of the subjects...