Introduction
The concept of meaning of work may be defined as the implication an individual attributes to work, work, and its importance in his personal life (Morse & Weiss 1955).Work is dominant in several cultures, although every single culture has its own conceptions and values and conceptions about work. However, work is imperative and significant for a good number of individuals putting into consideration the time they devote themselves to work in their lives, the various purposes which work helps them accomplish, and the fact that work is closely related to other important aspects of life such as leisure, family, community life and religion (England & Whiteley 1990). The notion; meaning of work may also be defined as an individual’s inclination or orientation toward work, what the person seeks in working, and the motives guiding his actions.
Work has several definitions, but they all share the idea of a resolute activity. Work is referred to as the use of energy through a set of synchronized activities aimed at developing something useful. Work may be pleasing or unpleasing, and may or may not be relative to the financial exchange(Wrzesniewski, Dutton & Debebe 2003). Work has changed a lot since the times of industrial revolution. The advancement of science and technology can be partly attributed to this, with major revolutions taking place in the organizational culture and structure, having some effects on the structuring of work. Employers are eager to attempt the day’s flavor; that is if the workers of the 21st century are overworked then those of previous century are over-managed as well as over-worked. Attempts to this notion, has been in place in order to enhance the financial performance of the modern day organizations. Although the hectic movement of deviations has been slackened during the modern times, numerous managerial trends still do a lot of injury to work and its environment. Globalization alongside its outsourcing and offshoring, also adds intricacy to the issue of work. However, they create many openings to change mindset and to reestablish the meaning of work for people. As people get connected, share several problems and solutions.
Alongside the industrialization of communities, work has been structured in a scientific way. Movement and time studies were done so as to exploit the worker’s productivity and enhance efficiency in operations. Individuals were treated in the pre-modern era as extensions of machines and dispensable spare parts. People were asked to exercise simple, thin skills, and their recital was monitored closely by supervisors devoted to the pyramid. Dehumanization is a strong managerial inclination which is derived from the high-class valorization of financial and productivity results. It contains the adoption of impersonal and objective attitudes towards individuals and treating them like every other resource, consciously neglecting their sociological psychological, spiritual and cultural complexity (Weisskopf-Joelson 1967). For example, clients are considered as financial agents with a sole function of purchasing goods or services, the organization offers. In a similar scenario, employees are regarded as resources which should devote their talents and time and talents to ensuring the organization’s financial performance. This vision results in a direct denial of the humanity of the individuals involved the work environment. This paper analyzes the different perspectives of the meaning of work, presenting the trends and changes which have took the center stage of defining work. Work has always been changing as a result of a number of factors which include the advancement of technology and globalization. In this paper, the effects of technology, and the importance of skill is presented alongside the effects of globalization in shaping the meaning of work in the modern day society; the 21st century society.
Historical perspectives of changes
According to Martin Buber, “The high evaluation of productivity which is affecting our age has prospered so much and its par-technical glance has created a senseless exclusivity of its own which allows the honorably innovative persons with the use of their organic skills to decadent into an independent growth to gratify the demand of the modern era (Buber 1958). The point Buber passes is not the downplaying of the essence of financial success and productivity, but the recognition of the importance of work, human existence and dignity.
James Hillman on the other hand, believes that individual moralize work and make a problem out of it, neglecting the notion that hands love working and has the mind in its coordination (Ciulla 2000). He furthers states that ethics on work does a lot to impede work; it creates a perception that work is a duty instead of pleasure. Therefore, work being a pleasure, is an instinctual gratification; not merely “the right to work”, or as an economic requirement or a social obligation or a moral reparation brought onto Adam upon leaving the Garden of Eden. In some perspective, the hands want to do things, and the human mind loves to apply itself. Work cannot be reduced. We do not work to gather food, gain conquest and tribal power, or to purchase a new vehicle and so on and so forth. Work is in its own an end and it brings its own joy; but no individual is needed to have a fantasy in order for work to continue, and the fantasies people in the 21st century have about work; that is, sociological and economic fantasies, keeps it going on. Therefore, there is a huge challenge of productivity and quality in the modern day work. People are forced to work where they do not want to work in, no one wants to work. It is can be equated to the act of refusing to eat or make love. This is an instinctual laming; a psychological fault which does not relate to the work instinct (Hillman, 1989).
Instinct is an inborn and prevailing tendency. Therefore, work instinct would be an innate and prevailing tendency to exert an individual’s physical and mental powers, skills and talents, so as to attain something, a goal, create or express one’ self. Working is important to human beings; it is a perilous activity for the maintenance of personal health. To the degree that the work organization provides for, work can act as a tonic for personal identification; it helps reinforce self-esteem. When a person undertakes a meaningful work, he or she actually creates a sense of worth, identity and dignity. Through the achievement of meaningful results, one actually achieves oneself, develops, and even, actualizes her or his full potential. In some way, an individual has a chance to become who she or he is and to give to the enhancement of the conditions of a personal life and that of the community at large. However, work may become problematic when a person does not relate to it. This experience is described as alienation.
When an individual thinks of work, he or she frequently thinks of a job. However, work is much more than a job. Despite providing the basic subsistence needs and living settings, work is an activity through which a person fits into the world, creates new associations, uses talent, learns and matures self-identity and a sense of belonging. Work is an exertion of effort with an aim of making something, achieving something to attain some desired goal (Harpaz & Fu 2002). Therefore, work is a meaningful way for an individual to showcase existence which is actually worth to be lived for.
Technological influence
The recent advancement in terms of technology in the 21st century has largely influenced the organizations, their work structure and the social universe at large (Drucker 2001). Technology has adversely affected the motivation of individuals concerning their work. As deep and concrete shift in societies are made, organizations have had to keep up with the task of having the workers motivated, this activity has involved keeping the workers aroused of their expectations and showing them the ways to satisfy these needs in a well-structured way which contributes to the realization of the goals of these organizations. If the central concept remains the same, changes will most definitely occur in worker’s values and sequentially in their needs and in a way in which their needs are well-met. It is expected that "traditional" needs such as salary and benefits, guarantee for permanence, show of loyalty, will slowly lose their meaning. Furthermore, individualization will be apparent; the needs will be precise to workers and will vary amongst them: what motivates different types of workers varies a lot, they must be satisfied in the work they are doing. They need to understand the organization’s mission, have faith in it, thus may need continual training, to see results. Inherently, different groups in the work force have to be managed separately at different times (Drucker, 2001).
Furthermore, workers who will only be contracted for a particular project, and possibly also those who will be working remotely, may classify relatively to the organization and its goals to a less extent than in traditional context. Finally, efficiency, productivity and successfulness of highbrow work are complex to evaluate, quantify analyze, than other types of work. The critical problem for organizations is ensuring that activities can be undertaken at any time by a worker. Since workers are of great importance, it is clear that the organizations , which address the challenge are the ones which will excel and sustain its business (Drucker, 1993).
Effects of globalization
Work is a notion which captures the pre-modern economic and political times. Political constructivists have always had the opinion that productivity and efficiency relies on people acquiring skills, knowledge and capabilities (CBI 2001). It is argued that national work environments can no longer guarantee the workers a competitive environment which allows them to acquire new skills. However with the 21st century revolutions, economies have come to rely on knowledge-driven work force.
Globalization is perceived as a source of competitive workforce which depends on advancing the skills, entrepreneurial zeal and knowledge of the workforce (Brown and Lauder, 2001). In the new context of globalization, the meaning of work has been altered as individuals are getting the opportunity to interact with different cultures and working environments. The meaning of work is reflected in the 21st century to be moving away from the bureaucratic structures of the previous centuries which offered significantly stable but static career progression to workers (Collin and Young, 2000). Large organizations have become flatter, leaner, and prone to rapid work restructuring which makes them incompatible with the prospect of 20th century work structure. This has led organizations to focus on the need for workers to remain employable within their immediate jobs and also in the global working environment so as to avoid the face of being obsolete or being surplus workers. Work re-organization over the 21st century has been the center of work democratization. This in effect has brought about the shift in the meaning of work amongst different individuals as majority of them have adopted the drive for globalization.
For some individuals, work in the 21st century reflects a shift in power in a global capitalism nature (Drucker 1993). If organizations rely on the skills and knowledge of the workers then individuals with skills, knowledge and insights sought by organizations have a much privilege. This has took a center-stage in shaping the meaning of work (Micheals et al. 2001). The move from lasting works has given a great extent of financial freedom to workers who have restructured their career insights to match the calls for globalization in the labor market. This global view of work has informed the meaning of work. It also acts as a starting point of the recent studies scrutinizing the meaning of work in an economy driven by knowledge as a modern social construction.
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