The promotion of workplace partnership in the high performance workplace has become central to policy debates on the 'modernization' of employment relations in British industry. This book provides critical insights into the dynamics of partnership by way of in-depth case studies of employee experience in an under-researched industry noted for its high concentrations of skilled workers and graduates. Drawing on rich interview and questionnaire data, the authors highlight considerable conflicts of interest in the development of partnership that derive from the competitive capitalist environment in which management strategies operate.

Author Martin Upchurch: Martin Upchurch is Professor of International Employment Relations at Middlesex University, London.

List of Figures and Tables Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations PART 1: MODERNIZATION AND WORKPLACE RELATIONS The High Performance Workplace From Japanization to Learn to HPWS Partnership at Work Research Design PART 2: THE LEGACY OF TRADE UNION POWER The 1957 Engineering Dispute Piecework to Measured Day Work Other Patterns of Conflict in the 1970s The Thatcher Years Industrial Democracy PART 3: ORGANIZATIONAL RESTRUCTURING AND THE NEW INSECURITY Organizational Restructuring in the Aerospace Sector High Performance Management and Organizational Change The New Insecurity: Worker Attitudes to High Performance Management Conclusion PART 4: HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEMS AND THE PRODUCTION WORKER High Performance Work Organization on the Shop-Floor The Quality of Working Life on the Shop-Floor Labour Control and Resistance Conclusion PART 5: HIGH PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEMS AND THE TECHNICAL WORKER High Performance Work Organization and Social Relations in Technical Work The Quality of Working Life in the Technical Office Technical Labour, Collectivism and Resistance Conclusion PART 6: WORKPLACE PARTNERSHIP: MANAGEMENT AND UNION STRATEGY The Business Case for Partnership Partnership and Union Strategy Partnership and Union Strategy: The Case of Airframes Partnership and Union Strategy: The Case of JetCo Conclusion PART 7: PARTNERSHIP AND WORKER PARTICIPATION: VOICES FROM THE FLOOR Direct Worker Participation Direct Worker Participation (1): The Joint Consultative Committee Direct Worker Participation (2): Union Representation and Partnership Conclusion PART 8: TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE: SUPPORTING PARTNERSHIP OR ELITES? Skills Training Employee Appraisals and Control Gender, Contract and Employee Development Conclusion PART 9: WORKPLACE PARTNERSHIP: A QUESTION OF INTERESTS The Reality of Partnership: Conditions for Mutuality or Discord? Conclusion References