The Atkinson 1984 Flexible Model - 1478 Words

The Atkinson 1984 ‘flexible model’ explain about labour market flexibility and employment restructuring in the 1980s. According to Suzette Dyer Atkinson’s ‘flexible firm’ model provides a framework based on breaking internal hierarchical labour market by creating workforce. The ‘flexible firm’ is a micro-level dual labour market mode, with an inner ‘core’ of stable, skilled employees with access to ‘primary labour market’ conditions of secure employment and career prospects(Warwick Paper in Industrial Relations, 1987). The ‘core’ workforce is said to be made up of highly skilled workers who are able to participate in decision making and are directly employed by an organisation. Such workers are provided with job security and high salaries that reflect skill level and their importance to the organisation. The ‘peripheral’ workforce by contrast are less central (i.e. they are important, bu t not part of the ‘core business’), making them more easily recruitable from the open labour market, and therefore less protected from its competitive pressure(Warwick Paper in Industrial Relations, 1987). The ‘peripheral’ workforce are characterised by low wages, low job security and having little or no autonomy in their work. Atkinson model of ‘Flexible firm’ identifies five types of flexibility that companies seek: functional flexibility, numerical flexibility, location flexibility, financial flexibility, temporal flexibility. Functional flexibility is that employees can be redeployedShow MoreRelatedBenefits And Benefits Of Working Flexibility981 Words   |  4 PagesWorking flexibility is about how flexible work is organized in the workplace so that the organizations and employees benefits. Workplace flexibility can be regarded as ‘the capacity of employees to make decisions influencing when, where and for how long they engage in work’ (Jeffrey, 2008). Flexible working is a kind of working arrangement which gives a level of flexibility on how long, when, where as well as at what times employees work. Employees access flexible working through HR arrangements,Read MoreIs The 40 Hour Work Week Working?1198 Words   |  5 Pagesset your own schedule each week? Well, the time has come where many companies human resources departments have changed their ways of thinking about the 40 hour work week. Many human resource departments have now began giving their employees a more flexible work schedule as long as their work is being completed. According to the Business Dictionary, â€Å"A workplace management and organizational technique optimizes human resources through flexibility based on segmenting the employees into peripheralRead MoreWhy Flexible Working Practices Are An Important Features Of Uk Business Organizations1716 Words   |  7 Pagesorganizational examples and academic theory explain why Flexible Working Practices are an important feature of UK business organizations? This essay will discuss and analyse why flexible working practices are an important feature of UK business organisations, by providing specific organisational examples and justification through academic theory. Flexible working is a form of employment that suits an employee’s needs such as, having flexible start and finishing times, or working from home opportunitiesRead MoreFordism1526 Words   |  7 PagesAmerican variety, the industry of Henry Ford’ Before Fordism is introduced in industry, the craftsman built the Vulcan cars, and it usually took several weeks to make Vulcan cars which were sold to upper class. In 1908, Henry Ford produced the first Model T car, and brought Fordism into industry. The workers who worked for Ford benefited from Fordism: the working time from 9 hours to 8 hours; the salary from $2.5 to $5ï ¼Ë†at leastï ¼â€°. The productivity increased sharply. From that time, Fordism was acceptedRead MoreExecutive Summary : Human Resource Managemen t3525 Words   |  15 PagesExecutive summary Human resource management is the process of managing human as resources for some organization. It is an important concept for most of the business organization. The model given by the Guest is based on the notion that human resource management is somehow different from other personnel management, so it is most popular among the business organizations. A strategic approach is important for most of the organizations as it works as the legal framework of that organization .It definesRead MoreThe Labour Market And Its Internal And External Dimensions1915 Words   |  8 PagesIntroduction It is often asserted that recent globalization has engendered flexibility. Production needs to be responsive to changes in global demand so the workforce must be flexible. However it is also argued that flexibility is not new and has long been a part of the structure of the labour market (Hakim as cited in Pollert, 1988). Perhaps flexibility is just seen as more relevant because it is promoted by the contemporary neo-liberal agenda. According to Meager, there may be a shift in ‘theRead MoreHow Flexibility Is An Essential Thing1356 Words   |  6 PagesFrom Atkinson’s research in 1984 we can understand that flexibility is an essential thing is this competitive business world. So in order to cope up with the situation, companies need to explicitly imply all three types of flexibilities and treat flexibility as an essential thing rather than an additional option. In the flexible firm model denoted by Atkinson, there are two peripheries (core and secondary). `Therefore, it can be presumed that the inner core-periphery of highly skilled employeesRead MoreThe Organizational Culture of Quinlans3389 Words   |  14 Pagescultures There is a link between organisation culture, strategy and external environment. Based on this association, four types of culture can be defined (Daft, Management, 2003, p92) a) Adaptability – organisations that need to be flexible and make high risk decisions are suitable candidates for this culture. Signs from external environment are rapidly detected, interpreted and translated into responses. Employees are given the autonomy to make their own decisions andRead MoreManaging Human Resources4517 Words   |  19 PagesContents Introduction 1 Task 1 1 1.1 The Guest’s model of Human Resource Management 1 1.2 The differences between Story’s definitions of HRM, personnel and Industrial Relations (IR) practices: 3 1.3 The implications of developing a strategic approach to HRM for line managers and employees in organizations 5 Task2 6 2.1 A model of flexibility is applied in my organization 6 2.2 The types of flexibility developed in my organization 7 2.3 The use of flexible working practices from both the employee andRead MoreAnalysis of the Success of Omega Supermarket2213 Words   |  9 Pagesin the labour market are essential for understanding the issues which the managers may face. The Atkinson model for a flexible firm describes the necessity of the functional and the operational flexibility required within the organisation. All these factors are associated to the importance of the recruitment process and the need for outsourcing which is being adopted by the organisation (Atkinson, 1984). Moreover, there are certain psychological contracts which are required to be made with the employees