Reimagining the Economy: What Would It Take to Put People First?

What if the way we work could be a solution to big problems such as inequality and climate change?

In the new book Democratize Work: The Case for Reorganizing the Economy, Harvard Business School Professor Julie Battilana and a dozen other sociologists argue that, with the best management of social media management, management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system management system people that the planet is back to its peak. Through a series of articles, the book exposes the pitfalls of democracy and capitalism and, in building other planning strategies such as the alliance described in the article below, the authors describe what the green and biased economy will look like.

Edited by Battilana, Joseph C. Wilson Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and Alan L. Gleitsman Professor of Social Innovation at Harvard Kennedy School, Isabelle Ferreras, professor of sociology at Université catholique de Louvain and Senior Research. Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Worklife Program, by Dominique Méda, professor of sociology and director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research in the Social Sciences of the Université Paris Dauphine, the document provides new architecture for the future of work.

Democracy Work: The Case for Economic Reform

Article by Julie Battilana

When Sandra arrived in Boston from her hometown of Vitória, Brazil, everything was new. Remembering those first few months, he trembles. Through the move of a Brazilian immigrant, she found work as a housekeeper as soon as she settled down. She worked incessantly, going home all night long, late — and often very tired — to keep from spending time with her son. The work was tiring, the wages were meager, and the days were long. He had no choice but to think that the American Dream, or the chance to live a dignified life, was impossible no matter how quickly he left for work or how late he was. Because Sandra had overseen the safety of factory workers before moving to the United States, she also knew how much of the cleaning products she used could affect her health and the environment. So when she heard about Vida Verde, a group of workers organized by Brazilian immigrant women who sell household cleaners using environmentally friendly materials for domestic and environmental workers, she jumped at the chance to cooperate — even with them. that he did not. knowing what to expect.

Joining Sandra has made a huge difference in her life. Not only do some working owners have become a source of knowledge, support, and energy, but working on the results has also changed. He told me: “I feel I have a lot of power. “I am my boss. I make my own schedule. I can not explain the importance of this. Now I have time to take care of my son, and that ‘s why I moved to another country! I have become involved in business and have taken advantage of my situation to gain control of my life. ”

By coming together, the house workers have formed an organization that gives them control over their working life. In doing so, they transformed their capabilities by becoming co-operative owners who provide valuable support to their clients in terms of social and environmental issues: access to household cleaning services that are staffed by environmentalists and environmentalists. By allowing them to decide when to work, how to get compensation back, and even how to adjust to a global epidemic, this force has changed their lives. In March 2020, when the COVID-19 plague sent Boston to close, existing customers stopped and new customers stopped ringing; Sandra and Vida Verde’s career stopped. Together, they decided to use some of the company’s resources to compensate each employee for the lost business, and to provide Sandra with three months of hard work.

The authority that Sandra and her co-workers have in their work ethic may sound like a good foundation for all employees. Indeed, the opportunity for decent work, democracy, and health care for the people and the world is what every worker should have. However, this is not the norm for most people, especially economically and domesticly. The workplace remains prosperous, many more in power than in democracy. As the philosopher Elizabeth Anderson criticizes, “employers are oppressive, and workers are citizens.” Only a handful of employees have Sandra’s ability to make decisions that affect their working life. Such lack of self-control goes hand in hand with dissatisfaction with work, high levels of stress, and poor physical health. Employees often have no say in terms of pay (not surprisingly CEOs are paid 351 times more than regular employees in US companies), in hiring large jobs, or changes in their organization’s health or financial problems. Instead, especially in uncoordinated workingplaces, oversight of elections is placed in the hands of senior officials and board members who represent the interests of their owners. Since power comes from the control of the acquisition of valuable assets, this disparity in directing appropriate decisions leads to greater power inequalities between workers, executives, and investors, which puts workers in less demanding positions.

Reprinted with permission from Democracy Work: The Case for Economic Reform written by Isabelle Ferreras, Julie Battilana, and Dominique Méda and edited by Miranda Richmond Mouillot, published by the University of Chicago Press. © 2022 by University of Chicago Press. All rights reserved.

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Photo: iStockphoto / Radomir Jovanovic