Abating inequalities? : Job quality at the intersection of class and gender in Finland 1977–2013
Globalization with its many side-effects on working life is seen to pose accentuated risks especially for women and low skilled workers – resulting in increasing polarization of job quality. In contrast to “universal theories”, institutional theories claim changes in work life might vary according to the institutional and cultural frameworks which mediate the global pressures of change. This study analyses job quality trends in Finland at the intersection of class and gender. The results, based on the Finnish Quality of Work Life survey (1977–2013), find no clear evidence of polarization. In line with the institutional theory’s prediction of a low risk of polarization in coordinated and in…
Night Work and Mortality: Prospective Study Among Finnish Employees Over the Time Span 1984 to 2008
There is considerable evidence showing that night work is associated with increased morbidity, but only a few studies have focused on its relation to mortality. This study investigates the relationship between the type of working-time arrangement (weekly night work/daytime work) and total and cause-specific mortality among men and women. The data consist of a representative working conditions survey of Finnish employees conducted in 1984 (2286 men/2216 women), which has been combined with register-based follow-up data from Statistics Finland covering the years 1985-2008. In the 1984 survey, the employees were asked if they worked during the night (23:00-06:00 h) and if so, how often. In thi…
The sidelining of gender equality in a corporatist and knowledge-oriented regime : The case of failed family leave reform in Finland
Reform of the family leave system has been on the Finnish political agenda for a long time but has proved to be a challenging task. The challenges relate to ideological differences between the political parties and to non-decision making in tripartite working groups, where the labour market parties participate in policy formulation. The article analyses the recent attempt to reform the Finnish family leave system under a right-conservative government (2015–2019) as an example of how diverging political ideologies and vested interests undermine adoption of government gender equality policy. The case also serves as an example of the growing influence of knowledge, and especially economic know…
Radikaalin perhevapaauudistuksen haasteet
Työmarkkinajärjestöjä on aikaisemmin kritisoitu tasa-arvopolitiikan vesittämisestä. Marinin hallituksella on mahdollisuus viedä uudistus läpi myös niin sanotuilla pakkolaeilla. Taipuvatko työmarkkinajärjestöt Marinin hallituksen perhevapaauudistukseen? nonPeerReviewed
Kytkintä nostavat äidit nykykirjallisuudessa
Kirja-arvio teoksesta Jenny Björklund, Maternal Abandonment and Queer Resistance in Twenty-First-Century Swedish Literature. Palgrave Macmillan. 293s.
The Nordic difference: Job quality in Europe 1995–2010
Previous empirical research has pointed out that Nordic countries are distinguished from the rest of Europe in terms of job quality. On the other hand, it has been debated whether, in the longer run, the Nordic welfare state is able to insulate workers from globalization effects. This article investigates whether Nordic countries have retained their advantageous position concerning job quality compared with other EU countries. Empirical analyses are based on the European Working Conditions Survey collected in 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2010. We use data on employees in the 15 member states of the EU prior to enlargement in 2004 (n = 61,457). The results partly confirm previous findings of high j…
Työelämän laatu -Onko instituutioilla merkitystä?
Pohjoismainen työmarkkinamalli digipaniikin aikakaudella
Työn tulevaisuudesta käytävissä keskusteluissa muutosta pidetään vääjäämättö mänä ja deterministisenä erityisesti silloin, kun on kyse teknologian vaikutuksesta työhön ja työllisyyteen. Kuitenkin vertailevat tutkimukset osoittavat, että työ markkinoiden rakennemuutoksen polarisaatiokehitys eli jakautuminen ”hyviin” ja ”huonoihin” töihin on ollut Pohjoismaissa muuta Eurooppaa lievempää. Teknologiseen determinismiin liittyvä vääjäämättömyyden retoriikka epäpolitisoi muutoksen. Teknologian kehitystä, käyttöönottoa ja seurauksia on pyritty poliittisesti hallitsemaan. Pohjoismaisen työmarkkinamallin rakentuminen on tästä mainio esimerkki. Työn tulevaisuutta koskevissa keskusteluissa tulisikin …
Is Finnish Corporatism Reconfiguring, and Is It Good for Gender Equality?
The Nordic model of employment relations, characterised by centralised collective bargaining and strong collaboration between social partners and the state, has often been linked to positive gender equality outcomes. Although the Nordic model has maintained stability even in the economic crisis of 2008, the Finnish labour market was faced with neoliberal pressures for change, liberalisation and decentralisation and a belief in the necessity of internal devaluation to restore national competitiveness. This chapter focuses on recent developments within the Finnish corporatist system and whether these changes have implications for gender equality. We argue that Finnish corporatism has not alwa…
“F*** this shit” : Negotiating the Boundaries of Public Expression of Mother’s Negative Feelings
In 2017, Finnish celebrity Sini Ariell published a blog post titled “F*** this shit” in which she revealed her difficult feelings as a mother of a newborn baby. Attracting attention from Finnish media, the post went viral. Through the empirical analysis of affective reactions to the post on an anonymous online discussion board, we explore how the limits of the public expression of negative maternal feelings are negotiated and maintained, but also challenged. Our results highlight the normative, even punitive dynamics of the digital intimate public, as commenters on the discussion board often argued that struggles and unhappiness during motherhood should not be made public but dealt with in …
Äitiyden tunnekartan piilotettuja palasia kartoittamassa
Tohtorit työmarkkinoilla : paneelikeskustelu LabourNet-tutkijakoulun konferenssissa "Shaping and reshaping the boundaries of working life" Tampereella
Paneelikeskustelu LabourNet-tutkijakoulun konferenssissa ”Shaping and reshaping the boundaries of working life” Tampereella 1.10.2015. nonPeerReviewed
Rajanveto työn ja perheen välille vaatii yhä enemmän taitoa
The Intensification of Work
Work intensity has become an increasingly vital concept in understanding current changes in the employment sector, and why these changes have detrimental implications for the well-being of employees and their families. Objective measures, such as allocation or length of work hours, do not necessarily catch the tempo of work during the time spent at work. Nor are the hours an appropriate indicator of the level of mental effort and strain in and even outside of (official) work (hours). This chapter discusses the various change processes in the economy and work life that have led to the intensification of work. The chapter’s aim is also to describe how these change processes pose varying chall…
How bright are the Nordic Lights? : job quality trends in Nordic countries in a comparative perspective
Nordic countries stand out from the rest of the Europe in terms of job quality. Comparative research literature sought to explain the distinctiveness of Nordic countries with diverse sets of institutional frameworks. However, global competition, technological revolution and deregulation are common developments throughout the industrial world – processes which are seen to erode the meaning of institutions and nation states as protective mechanisms. This dissertation discusses the question on the existence and persistence of the Nordic working life model through the concept of job quality, which are investigated using surveys on working conditions. The study draws from both universal and inst…
“Childish, Self-Centered, and Cruel” : Classed Disgust, Maternal Complaint, and Mediated Morality in an Anonymous Online Discussion Board
In December 2017, Finnish celebrity Sini Ariell published a blog post revealing the negative feelings she had experienced as the mother of a newborn. The post went viral, sparking moral outrage in Finnish digital media forums. In our affective-discursive analysis, we trace the reactions of disgust that appeared in an online discussion generated by Ariell’s post. Paying attention to how disgust was attached to different bodies, objects, and signs, we identify three main targets of disgust: 1) Ariell herself; 2) public maternal complaint; 3) “perfect mothers” and pronatalism. Classed disgust toward Ariell arose from details such as her body, her makeup and tattoos, and her public display of e…
Pohjoismainen työelämän laatu Euroopan parasta – mutta kuinka kauan?
Lectio Praecursoria nonPeerReviewed
Asiakas palvelun asiantuntijana – Ajankohtaisia tutkimuksia asiakkaan roolista palveluiden tuotannossa (Dunkel, W. & Kleemann, F. (2013) Customers at Work. New Perspectives on Interactive Service Work)
Kirja-arvostelu: Dunkel, W. & Kleemann, F. (2013) Customers at Work. New Perspectives on Interactive Service Work. Basingstoke/New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 257s. nonPeerReviewed
Gendered Labor Market (dis)advantages in Nordic Welfare States. Introduction to the Theme of the Special Issue
Gender equality has been named as one of the normative foundations of Nordic wel- fare states. This is reflected in how, year after year, Nordic states rank among the most gender egalitarian countries in the world (see, e.g., World Economic Forum 2020). In Nordic countries, the state has been, and continues to be, a central actor in shaping women’s citizenship, labor market opportunities, and caring roles. Especially publicly funded welfare services and policies that facilitate the reconciliation of work and care have played a major part in advancing women’s labor market participation (see, e.g., Bergquist et al. 1999; Borchorst & Siim 2002; Ellingsæter & Leira 2006; Siim & Stol…
Epätyypilliset työajat ja työntekijöiden hyvinvointi: Tutkimushankkeen loppuraportti 30.4.2019
In this project we look at how post-industrial, service economy changes work and leisure practices, and what effect it has on the welfare of employees. We look at well-being from a social and health perspective. The topic is important, as much of the public debate on atypical working hours is based more on assumptions than on empirical research. The problem with previous surveys has been the reliable identification of atypical working hours. Traditionally, employees have been asked about their work hours at a general level e.g. during the previous month or week. In this study, we use the rich material provided by time-use studies to describe changes in the timing of work. Time use diaries c…
Tuottaako pohjoismainen malli hyvää työelämän laatua vielä tulevaisuudessakin?
Pohjoismaat ovat perinteisesti erottuneet työelämän laatuvertailuissa Euroopan ykkösinä. Taustalla vaikuttavat työmarkkinoiden palveluvaltaisuus ja korkea työvoiman osaamistaso, mutta myös erilaiset institutionaaliset tekijät, kuten työmarkkinoiden sääntely, ammattiyhdistysliikkeen asema ja sosiaalipoliittiset ratkaisut. Työelämän laatu voi kuitenkin heikentyä, kun näitä ankkureita kierretään tai kun ne eivät tavoita kaikkien alojen työntekijöitä. Organisaatioiden uudelleenjärjestelyt, ulkoistaminen ja alihankinta sekä uusien alojen ja työnteon uusien muotojen syntyminen saattavat heikentää työelämän laatua. nonPeerReviewed
The Most Invisible Maternal Experience? Analysing How Maternal Regret Is Discussed in Finland
AbstractIn Finland, becoming a mother is often constructed as an individual choice that ultimately leads to personal fulfilment and happiness, despite the occasional ‘negative’ feelings associated with motherhood such as exhaustion, frustration and tiredness. In this cultural atmosphere, maternal regret continues to be a subject that is hidden, forbidden and rarely scrutinised. It is perhaps surprising that in one of the world’s most gender egalitarian countries, which is also perceived to be one of the best countries in which to be a mother, women still testify that motherhood is limited to survival. We argue that, somewhat paradoxically, discussing the negative emotions of motherhood migh…
The figure of a regretful mother on an online discussion board
Peer reviewed
Tiedelehden kehittämisestä ja työelämän tutkimuksesta
Engaged or Not? A Comparative Study on Factors Inducing Work Engagement in Call Center and Service Sector Work.
The aim of this study was to compare the possibilities of experiencing positive well-being in call centers and other service sector work. The article focuses on the prevalence of working conditions (job demands, autonomy, and social support) in call centers and at other service sector workplaces and how these factors are related to work engagement. In addition, we examine whether the relationships are divergent in call centers in comparison to other service sector work. Analysis is based on the data provided by the “Quality of Life in Changing Europe” project. The survey data were collected from service sector organizations (retail, banking, and insurance) and a telecom organization’s call …