Working space: why incorporating the geographical is central to theorizing work and employment practices

Abstract

Theorists of work and employment (W&E) practices should more seriously engage with literatures concerning how space is constitutive of social praxis. Rather than simply serving as a stage upon which social life is played out or being merely a reflection of social relations, the construction of the economic landscape in particular ways is fundamental to how social systems function. Struggles over space are a central dynamic in W&E practices as different actors engage with the economic landscape to ensure their 'geographical vision' is emplaced in that landscape. Furthermore, conflicts over W&E practices frequently revolve around the spatial (re)scaling of such practices (as when collective bargaining is 'decentralized'). Consequently, an important key to better theorizing W&E practices is understanding how the various spatial scales at which these operate are socially constructed and discursively represented.

Gendered Spaces of Informal Entrepreneurship in Soweto, South Africa

“…Whereas refinements to notions of work and employment in the informal economy have been addressed (Webster, 2005;Grant, 2010), the gendered spaces of entrepreneurial work constitute an underexplored frontier (Lourenço-Lindell, 2002;Herod et al, 2007;Hanson and Blake, 2009). To extend our thinking on working space, I draw on a literature on building trust in economic space (MacKinnon et al, 2002;Murphy, 2003Murphy, , 2006 and use empirical research (as opposed to theorizing) to assess what connects firms in a particular place at a particular time.…”

International Employment Agencies and Migrant Flexiwork in an Enlarged European Union

“…[4] Arguing the reverse*that labour geographers have failed to seek collaboration with migration researchers*Castree asserts that '[t]he challenge is not only to understand labour migrations in their own right, but to integrate their analysis into those of other labour geographies, given that migration is never about migrants alone ' (2007: 859). See Herod et al (2007) for an explanation of why and how theories of work and employment, for their part, could benefit from geography. [5] Later versions in which the authors further elaborate their thoughts on the temporary staffing industry are Theodore and Peck (2002) and Peck and Theodore (2007).…”

Vol 6, No 1 (2016)

“…The relationship between intraprofessional relations and the physical organization of work can also be linked to issues of space and place; known as labor geography. Herod et al (2007) claim that…”

“…Based on the results of the review, and the above line of argument, we would like to argue that future research should take temporal and spatial dimensions of work into consideration, including the conditions of employment. This is of high importance in examining the conditions surrounding teachers' work, as they relate to current choice agendas (Hanson Thiem, 2009;Herod et al, 2007;. Such an approach would help clarify the organization of work and its implications , and if and how different school contexts such as geographical regions equate to different working conditions.…”