The new gold rush: the new multinationals and the commodification of public sector work

Ursula Huws, null

doi:10.13169/workorgalaboglob.2.2.0001

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Work Organisation, Labour and Globalisation

Volume 2, Issue 2

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The new gold rush: the new multinationals and the commodification of public sector work

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Author(s): Ursula Huws

Publication date (Print): Autumn 2008

Journal: Work Organisation, Labour and Globalisation

Publisher: Pluto Journals

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Abstract

This article describes the growth of the new ‘public services industry’ and outlines the way in which government-provided services can be transformed into commodities and opened up as new fields of activity for private companies. Pointing out that many of these companies have become major transnational enterprises, it then goes on to introduce the other articles in this collection, which focus on the commodification, corporatisation and privatisation of a range of public and government support services, including health, education, transport, energy and water supply, telecommunications, waste disposal, customer services, IT support and postal services. Many of these articles focus on the impact of restructuring on industrial relations, labour processes, working conditions and occupational identities and conclude that these developments are associated with the intensification and casualisation of work, derecognition of unions and continuing elaborations of the international division of labour.

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Journal

Journal ID (doi): 10.13169

Journal ID (publisher-id): workorgalaboglob

Title: Work Organisation, Labour and Globalisation

Publisher: Pluto Journals

ISSN (Print): 1745641X

ISSN (Electronic): 17456428

Publication date (Print): Autumn 2008

Volume: 2

Issue: 2

Pages: 1-8

Article

Publisher ID: workorgalaboglob.2.2.0001

DOI: 10.13169/workorgalaboglob.2.2.0001

SO-VID: b25380e5-3be0-4459-a877-53142f17b296

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All content is freely available without charge to users or their institutions. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal without asking prior permission of the publisher or the author. Articles published in the journal are distributed under a http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

History

ScienceOpen disciplines: Sociology,Labor law,Political science,Labor & Demographic economics,Political economics

References

Computer Weekly (2008) ‘PA Consulting's remorse over prison data loss’, 12 September. Retrieved on October 2, 2008 from http://www.computerweekly.com/blogs/tony_collins/2008/09/pastatement-on-loss-of-prison.html
Daily Telegraph (2008). ‘SATS firm ETS Europe has contract terminated after marking crisis’, August 15. Retrieved on October 2, 2008 from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2563092/Sats-firm-ETS-Europe-has-contract-terminated-after-marking-crisis.html
Hochschild, A (1983) The Managed Heart: The Commercialization of Human Feeling , Berkeley: University of California Press
Huws, U (2003) The Making of a Cybertariat: virtual work in a real world , New York: Monthly Review Press
Julius, D. (2008) Public Services Industry Review , London: Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Leys, C. (2001) Market-driven Politics:Neoliberal Democracy and the Public Interest , London: Verso Silicon.com (2008) ‘OFT refers Capita IBS deal to Competion Commssion’, 21 November. Accessed on 21 November, 2008 from http://services.silicon.com/itoutsourcing/0,3800004871,39348161,00.htm

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[1] Computer Weekly (2008) ‘PA Consulting's remorse over prison data loss’, 12 September. Retrieved on October 2, 2008 from http://www.computerweekly.com/blogs/tony_collins/2008/09/pastatement-on-loss-of-prison.html

[2] Daily Telegraph (2008). ‘SATS firm ETS Europe has contract terminated after marking crisis’, August 15. Retrieved on October 2, 2008 from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2563092/Sats-firm-ETS-Europe-has-contract-terminated-after-marking-crisis.html

[3] Hochschild, A (1983) The Managed Heart: The Commercialization of Human Feeling , Berkeley: University of California Press

[4] Huws, U (2003) The Making of a Cybertariat: virtual work in a real world , New York: Monthly Review Press

[5] Julius, D. (2008) Public Services Industry Review , London: Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform

[6] Leys, C. (2001) Market-driven Politics:Neoliberal Democracy and the Public Interest , London: Verso Silicon.com (2008) ‘OFT refers Capita IBS deal to Competion Commssion’, 21 November. Accessed on 21 November, 2008 from http://services.silicon.com/itoutsourcing/0,3800004871,39348161,00.htm