Sociology 31, Fall 1998, Prof. Aldrich and Ms. Renzulli

November 24th 1998 Summary

Review of Bureaucracy

  1. In the last class, we discussed the way people perceive bureaucracy, and some possible "solutions" to the bureaucratic problem at UNC-CH. We concluded that it might not be so bad, after all.
  2. Question: what are the benefits of bureaucracy? What can happen if it is eliminated from an organization?
  3. Question: what is the process of rationalization and why is it important for an understanding of bureaucracy? Rationalization involves the elimination of irrational, personal, emotional components from action.
  4. Bureaucratic control is embedded in the social & organizational structure of firms. It is built into job categories, work rules, promotion procedures, discipline, wage scales, etc.
  1. direction of work tasks: division of labor, specialization, & job descriptions are 3 ways work is directed. Job manuals are characteristic of bureaucracies.
  2. Evaluation: supervision & evaluation through a worker's job description. No arbitrary evaluations allowed by higher ups. Evaluators are constrained by the rules of their own job descriptions. Brings staff under control from above. Question: ho w does this contrast with earlier forms of control?
  3. Rewards & punishments: eliciting cooperation & enforcing compliance are focused mainly on rewards. Question: what are some rewards that bureaucracies offer people?
  1. Question: what makes bureaucratic control so efficient?
  1. Standardization -- reduces uncertainty
  2. Objectivity -- not irrational/arbitrary
  3. Never ending -- never sleeps…
  4. Control large #'s of people -- Question: how does it differ from earlier systems in this regard?

TODAY: Clerical & sales workers

What percent of secretaries are women?

Look up the answer in Hodson & Sullivan

Why did women increase as a proportion of the clerical work force?

Look it up.

Video: Good Monday Morning.

On reserve in the Undergrad Library as V-2922. Please view it, if you weren't in class.

Question on video: How did the workers describe their jobs as clerks?

"lots of responsibility but no control"

"felt like a robot"

"mindless"

"isolated"

"no matter how fast you work, it is not good enough:

"degrading"

"boring"

Question: Can offices be organized like factories?

YES!

How?

A 3-step process (logically, not necessarily always in this order historically):

  • Rationalize: see office work as a production process, just like factory work. But have to work within the limits of uncertainty
  • Separate conception from execution. Question: compare to F.W. Taylor? Division of labor, specialization, increasing number of job titles. Question: what are some of the new job titles that came with this change, according to Hodson & Sullivan?< /LI>
  • Mechanize & automate: importance of technology, as pointed out by Hodson & Sullivan. Question: what examples does Garson give of this? How about the readings in the Coursepak by Campbell and McEnally?

Handout in class: new technology may improve the work experience of some secretaries

Question: HOW? Some said "yes" it will improve the situation of secy's, but others said "no." They said only a few secy's, at the top, will benefit. The others will not. They will continue to lose skills, as shown in the video. The positive answers said that there will be fewer secy's and those remaining will know a lot more.

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