Working in Digital and Smart Organizations (eBook)

Edoardo Ales is Full Professor of European, Comparative and Italian Labour and Social Security Law. He teaches at both the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, and LUISS Guido Carli in Italy, as well as Vienna University of Economics and Business in Austria. Ylenia Curzi is Assistant Professor of Organization and HRM at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy. She previously studied at the University of Udine, Italy, and was a Visiting Scholar at Cardiff Business School, UK, in 2009.Tommaso Fabbri is Associate Professor of Organization and HRM, Director of the Ph.D Programme in Labour, Development and Innovation, and a member of the Softech-ICT Research Center at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy.Olga Rymkevich is a Senior Researcher at the Marco Biagi Foundation, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy. She previously studied labour law at Saint Petersburg State University.Iacopo Senatori is a Senior Researcher of Labour Law at the Marco Biagi Foundation, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy. He previously studied at the University of Bologna and is a Member of the Italian Society of Labour Law and Social Security.Giovanni Solinas is Full Professor of Economics at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy. He previously studied at the University of Cambridge, UK.

Contents 5
Notes on Contributors 8
List of Figures 12
List of Tables 13
1: Introduction 14
Part I: The Challenges of Digitalization for Employment Relations 22
2: Protecting Work in the Digital Transformation: Rethinking the Typological Approach in the Intrinsically Triangular Relationship Perspective 23
Introduction 23
The Effects of the Digital Transformation and Digitalization on the Work Relationship: An Overview 25
Safety, Health and the Quantification of Work in a Dematerialized and “Privatized” Work Environment 30
The Qualification of the “Digitalized” Work Relationship and Its Consequences on the Typological Approach to Workers’ Protection 33
From Traditional to “Digitalized” Work Pattern: Transitions as Risk, Challenge and Opportunity 38
References 40
3: Digital Work: An Organizational Perspective 41
Organization and Digitalization 41
Digital Work as Autonomous Work 43
Digital Work as Smart Work 46
Digital Work as Healthy Work 48
References 50
4: In Favour of Machines (But Not Forgetting the Workers): Some Considerations on the Fourth Industrial Revolution 51
Introduction 51
A New Industrial Revolution? 52
Evidence of Displacement? Lessons from the Data 55
In Favour of Machines: Policies for the Future of Manufacturing 61
Not Forgetting the Workers: Policy Issues 65
References 72
Part II: Work in the Gig Economy 76
5: A Fair Wage for Workers On-demand via App 77
Introduction 77
Are Workers on-Demand via App “Employees”? 79
Do Workers On-Demand via App Fit into Existing “Intermediate Categories” of Workers? 85
A New Category for Workers On-Demand Via App? 87
Thinking Bigger: A Fair Wage for “Personal Work Relations” 88
Challenges: (I) Competition Law 90
Challenges: (II) Free Movement of Services Within the EU Single Market 92
Conclusions 94
References 98
6: Assessment by Feedback in the On-demand Era 103
Introduction: What Is a Feedback System? 103
Centralized or Third-Party Mechanisms 104
Peer-to-Peer Mechanisms 105
Peer-to-Peer Mechanisms in Gig Economy Working Relation/Contract: The Difference Between Control of Result of Activity and Monitoring of the Way of Execution 105
Rating and Review Systems Under Competition Law: The Issue of Classification of Uber’s Economic Activities: Is It a Mere Intermediary or a Transportation Company? 109
European Protection of Personal Data and Ratings and Reviews: The Question of Reliability of Reputational Feedback Systems 110
European General Data Protection Regulation on “Automated Individual Decision Making”: A New Measure for Gig Economy Workers Against Algorithmic Decision 113
The Right of Crowdworkers to Move from One Platform to Another and the Right of Data Portability 114
References 119
7: The Classification of Crowdwork and Work by Platforms: Alternatives and Implications 122
Introduction: The Challenge of Platform Work 122
The Reclassification of the Platform Work Relationship 124
The Opportunity to Conceive Alternatives Paths: The Case of Italy 126
The Status of “Workers On-Demand-via-App” in Light of Italian Case Law on Pony Express Workers 128
The Status of Crowdworkers in Light of Italian Decisions on Call Centre Workers 129
Self-Employed Workers, in Many Cases 130
Not Just an Intermediary 131
Private Law Remedies for Digital Workers: In Particular, the Protection Against “Unfair Deactivation” 132
The Perspective of Legislative Intervention on Self-Employed Work Discipline in General: The Italian “Jobs Act of Autonomous Work” 136
The Perspective of Specific Legislative Intervention on Platform Work: The French Loi Travail… 137
…and the Italian “Sharing Economy Act” 137
Conclusions 138
References 142
Part III: Industrial Relations Strategies in Industry 4.0 147
8: Organizing and Collective Bargaining in the Digitized “Tertiary Factories” of Amazon: A Comparison Between Germany and Italy 148
Introduction 148
Work Processes and Work Organization at Amazon Fulfillment Centers 150
Amazon in Germany: The Struggle for the Collective Agreement 156
Amazon in Italy: The Way Toward the Unionization of Workers 163
Conclusions 165
References 169
9: Evolution of Trade Unions in Industry 4.0: A German and Italian Debate 172
A New Concept of Manufacturing, a New Idea of Work 172
Trade Unions’ Approach in Italy 176
Re-organize Workers’ Rights in the Digitized Factory 176
Practical Solutions to Improve Organization and Quality of Work: Collective Agreements 181
The Fiat Agreement of 15 June 2010 181
The National Collective Agreement of the Metalworker and Mechanical Engineering Industry of 2016 183
Work 4.0.: The German Recipe 184
Lifelong Learning and “New Normal” to Win the Digitization Struggle 184
Collective Bargaining: Work–Life Balance and an Improved Education System 188
The BMW Agreement of 2014: A Way to Combine Private Life and Working-Time Flexibility? 188
The Training Model of Baden-Württemberg: From 2001 to 2015 189
Additional Best Practices and Prospective Solutions to Enhance Workers’ Conditions 191
Conclusions 192
References 193
Part IV: The Impact of Digitalization on the Work Performance 198
10: DigitAgile: The Office in a Mobile Device. Threats and Opportunities for Workers and Companies 199
Introduction 199
Smart Working: A Statistical Portrait 200
Organizational Autonomy, Discretion and Control in the Organizational Regulation of Work 205
Other-Directed Organization Personality: Neither Autonomy nor Discretion 206
Discretionary Organization Personality: Discretion Without Autonomy 207
Cooperative Autonomy: Both Discretion and Autonomy 208
Mainly Autonomous Organization Personality: Autonomy Without Discretion 209
Applying the Typology to Research Data 210
Digitalization, Occupation and Productivity 213
Reconciling Work with Private Life 216
Conclusions 219
References 224
11: “Always-on”: The Collapse of the Work–Life Separation in Recent Developments, Deficits and Counter-Strategies 229
Introduction 229
Current Factual Situation 231
Legal Framework at the European Level 233
General Remarks 234
Limits and Entitlements 236
Concept of Work 237
Classification of “Free Time Work” 239
Classification of “Permanent Availability” 241
Deficits and Reasons 243
Additional Work Beyond Work Time Regulations 243
“Time Porosity” by Being Available 245
Counter-Strategies 246
Summary 249
References 250
Decisions and Opinions 253
12: Into Smart Work Practices: Which Challenges for the HR Department? 255
Introduction 255
Smart Working: The Definition and the Process for Its Implementation 257
At the Heart of the SW Introduction and Functioning: The HR Department 262
Our Research 266
The Aim of the Study 266
Methodology and Data Collection 266
The Main Findings 269
The “Medium-Soft” Approach to SW: Some Common Features from the Three Case Studies 269
Managing a Complex Process: The Roles of HR Departments in the Single Steps of SW Initiation and Implementation 270
Changing HR Practices 272
Final Considerations 273
Appendix 275
Interview Questions for HR Managers 275
SW: Reasons/Objectives and Results 275
Idea, Implementation and Actors/Functions Involved 275
Main Obstacles and Concerns 276
Smart Workers and Job Design 276
Investments Made in Different Organizational Systems 277
Corporate Level Policies (Managerial Systems) 277
Culture and Top Management Support 277
Interview Questions for SW Responsible in Charge 278
Interview Questions for to Trade Unionists 278
References 278
13: Conclusion 282
References 290
Index 292