The New World of Work

Working in Ireland has changed dramatically over the last two decades. In the early 1980s, those fortunate to have employment would likely be working in either agriculture or manufacturing and it was expected that the wages received would be adequate for a man to support his family. That has now changed, unemployment has fallen and the new jobs are in the service sector and frequently done by women. Yet we lack research on the effects these changes have on individuals. This is surprising, since work fundamentally shapes our lives, defining who we are, how wealthy we are and how much free time we have to spend with our family and friends and in our communities. This book fills this gap in the research. Various chapters look at how time with families is moulded around the working day; how work is individualised and solidarity fragmented; how workers devise strategies to confront managerial authority; how workers reinvent their identity in the new workplaces; and how immigrants are integrated into and excluded from Irish society through work.