Problems and Solutions in the Quality of Working Life

This paper presents an analysis of the type of problems generated by the factory system and the types of modern remedies proposed for those problems. The problems faced by people at work are classified into four types: political (insecurity), economic (inequity), psychological (alienation), and sociological (anomie). Individual remedies such as: worker directors, profit sharing, job enrichment, and sociotechnical design are then examined in terms of their capacity to solve these problems. A distinction between job enrichment and sociotechnical design is made in terms of the first meeting psychosocial expectations, and the latter providing a cultural or normative environment for work.