'Frames of reference' in Victorian England: What Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South reveals about perceptions of the employment relationship. (April 2021)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- 'Frames of reference' in Victorian England: What Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South reveals about perceptions of the employment relationship. (April 2021)
- Main Title:
- 'Frames of reference' in Victorian England: What Elizabeth Gaskell's North and South reveals about perceptions of the employment relationship
- Authors:
- Gold, Michael
- Other Names:
- Barry Michael guest-editor.
Wilkinson Adrian guest-editor. - Abstract:
- Alan Fox's conceptualisation of 'unitary', 'pluralistic' and subsequently 'radical' frames of reference has been outstandingly influential in the analysis of industrial relations and human resource management since the 1960s. This article demonstrates, however, that these distinctions long predate Fox even though he popularised the terminology. Evidence that observers used comparable frames of reference to categorise perceptions of the employment relationship goes back to the 1830s, and may be found in certain 'condition-of-England' novels that were set amid the social turbulence of the time. This article is based on close examination of one such novel, North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell. It informs our historical understanding of Fox's concept of 'frames of reference' through exploration of the relationship between three characters who broadly represent employer (unitary), union (radical) and middle-class (pluralist) perspectives. Their discussions about industrial conflict raise dilemmas similar to those analysed in contemporary industrial relations literature: how to forge closer relationships between employers and workers through processes designed to nurture high-trust dynamics while remaining aware of the underlying power imbalances between the two sides resulting from social inequalities of class and wealth.
- Is Part Of:
- Journal of industrial relations. Volume 63:Number 2(2021)
- Journal:
- Journal of industrial relations
- Issue:
- Volume 63:Number 2(2021)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 63, Issue 2 (2021)
- Year:
- 2021
- Volume:
- 63
- Issue:
- 2
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2021-0063-0002-0000
- Page Start:
- 126
- Page End:
- 148
- Publication Date:
- 2021-04
- Subjects:
- Elizabeth Gaskell -- frames of reference -- pluralism -- radical perspectives -- unitarism -- Victorian literature
Industrial relations -- Periodicals
Industrial relations -- Australia -- Periodicals
331.05 - Journal URLs:
- http://jir.sagepub.com/ ↗
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/loi/joir ↗
http://www.uk.sagepub.com/home.nav ↗ - DOI:
- 10.1177/0022185620960511 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 0022-1856
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library DSC - 5006.380000
British Library DSC - BLDSS-3PM
British Library HMNTS - ELD Digital store - Ingest File:
- 15297.xml