Work and Equalities Institute Fourth Annual Lecture: Can workers be organised if the state isn’t? Digitalisation, work and employment in emerging and developing economies
| Dates: | 10 May 2022 |
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| Times: | 10:00 - 11:30 |
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| What is it: | Lecture |
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| Organiser: | Work and Equalities Institute |
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| How much: | Free |
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| Who is it for: | University staff, External researchers, Adults |
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| Speaker: | Fang Lee Cooke |
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The role of the state in work and employment has traditionally been examined primarily at the macro level, focusing on its role as a regulator and employer in the context of employment relations. The role of the state, directly and indirectly, in shaping work and employment in the digitally-enabled business environment has remained insufficiently understood, particularly in less well-regulated economies.
Informed by the recently renewed research interest in the role of the state and governance theory, and drawing on empirical evidence of recent development in the emerging and developing economy context, this presentation explores the role of the state as a key institutional actor in shaping the adoption of digital technology at macro and micro levels, with implications for work, employment and human resource management across different sectors and segments of workforce. It examines the role of the state in promoting the adoption of digital technology in businesses on the one hand, and how its social policy may impact firms’ decision in their automation and labour strategy on the other, with broader and, in some cases, significant social implications in the longer term.
While not advocating statism, this presentation calls for more research attention to develop a more nuanced understanding of the diverse roles of the state at various levels and across business sectors in the light of its strategic goals and capability. It also highlights the need for state intervention in regulating new forms of labour strategy, such as that found in the digital platform economy in China.
Speaker
Fang Lee Cooke
Role: Associate Dean and Distinguished Professor or HRM and Asia Studies
Organisation: Monash Business School
Biography: Dr Fang Lee Cooke is Distinguished Professor at the Faculty of Business and Economics, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. She is a Fellow of Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. Prior to joining Monash University, Dr Cooke was a full professor at Manchester Business School at the University of Manchester (since 2005) in the United Kingdom. She has also held positions at RMIT (Deputy Head of School of Management), Melbourne and Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
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