Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action
Research on the health and well-being impact of precarious employment (PE) commonly conceptualizes employment as a relation of power between workers and employers, a perspective informed by power relations and relational social class theories. Social reproduction theory is a less common but compleme...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-12-01
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| Series: | SSM: Qualitative Research in Health |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667321524001033 |
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| author | Emilia F. Vignola Emily Q. Ahonen Luis Saavedra Emma K. Tsui |
| author_facet | Emilia F. Vignola Emily Q. Ahonen Luis Saavedra Emma K. Tsui |
| author_sort | Emilia F. Vignola |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Research on the health and well-being impact of precarious employment (PE) commonly conceptualizes employment as a relation of power between workers and employers, a perspective informed by power relations and relational social class theories. Social reproduction theory is a less common but complementary conceptual lens that can be used to investigate PE and health, in which the nature of work has relevance for the quality of employment. Social reproduction theory points to relations between groups of workers who are valued differently based on the capacity of their work to generate profit. Attending to relations between workers based on value, in addition to the well-established power relation between workers and employers, may point to consequences for health and well-being that are worth exploring empirically, and could serve as another tool to spur collective action around PE and its health effects. We provide an illustration and discuss the potential implications of this theoretical approach using data from in-depth interviews conducted in 2022 among precariously employed food workers in New York City. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-6d45a9b70e94471abec7c0cee85b1df7 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2667-3215 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | SSM: Qualitative Research in Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-6d45a9b70e94471abec7c0cee85b1df72025-08-20T01:59:35ZengElsevierSSM: Qualitative Research in Health2667-32152024-12-01610049410.1016/j.ssmqr.2024.100494Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and actionEmilia F. Vignola0Emily Q. Ahonen1Luis Saavedra2Emma K. Tsui3CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Department of Community Health and Social Sciences, 55 W. 125th Street, New York, NY, 10027, USA; Corresponding author.University of Utah School of Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences, 303 Chipeta Way, Myriad 6, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USACUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Department of Health Policy and Management, 55 W. 125th Street, New York, NY, 10027, USACUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Department of Community Health and Social Sciences, 55 W. 125th Street, New York, NY, 10027, USAResearch on the health and well-being impact of precarious employment (PE) commonly conceptualizes employment as a relation of power between workers and employers, a perspective informed by power relations and relational social class theories. Social reproduction theory is a less common but complementary conceptual lens that can be used to investigate PE and health, in which the nature of work has relevance for the quality of employment. Social reproduction theory points to relations between groups of workers who are valued differently based on the capacity of their work to generate profit. Attending to relations between workers based on value, in addition to the well-established power relation between workers and employers, may point to consequences for health and well-being that are worth exploring empirically, and could serve as another tool to spur collective action around PE and its health effects. We provide an illustration and discuss the potential implications of this theoretical approach using data from in-depth interviews conducted in 2022 among precariously employed food workers in New York City.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667321524001033Precarious employmentWorkWell-beingHealth inequalitiesPower relationsSocial reproduction |
| spellingShingle | Emilia F. Vignola Emily Q. Ahonen Luis Saavedra Emma K. Tsui Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action SSM: Qualitative Research in Health Precarious employment Work Well-being Health inequalities Power relations Social reproduction |
| title | Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action |
| title_full | Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action |
| title_fullStr | Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action |
| title_full_unstemmed | Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action |
| title_short | Conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction: Potential implications for health research and action |
| title_sort | conceptualizing precarious employment through the lens of social reproduction potential implications for health research and action |
| topic | Precarious employment Work Well-being Health inequalities Power relations Social reproduction |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667321524001033 |
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