Drawing on a range of employee and employer surveys, this ambitious study presents a comprehensive examination of the conditions, attitudes, and experiences of British employees over the last twenty years. Based on the 'Future of Work' research programme this book will shape our understanding of employment in Britain for the foreseeable future.

1. Introduction ; 2. The Externalization of the Employment Relationship? ; 3. Inequality at Work: Harmonization, Individualization, and Social Class ; 4. Representation, Participation, and Individualism ; 5. Markets, Insecurity, and Overwork ; 3. Control, Incentives, and Overwork ; 7. The Family Challenge ; 8. Unequal Jobs: Job Quality and Job Satisfaction ; 9. Conclusions

Draws on a wide range of high quality nationally representative surveys Detailed, carefully referenced, literature reviews Clearly presented tables and diagrams, links to accompanying websites The chapters are relatively self-contained and may be read separately from others.

Patrick McGovern is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the London School of Economics & Political Science having previously held positions at Aston University and London Business School. His research interests are in economic sociology, especially the sociology of work and labour markets, and international migration. He is the author of HRM, Technical Workers and the Multinational Corporation (Routledge, 1998). Stephen Hill is the Principal of Royal Holloway, University of London and Professor of Management. He has written widely on social theory and economic sociology. His research interests include work and organizations, control systems, quality management, human resource management and the effects of technological change on manufacturing organizations. He is the author or co-author of six books including Competition and Control at Work (Heinemann, 1981), The Dominant Ideology Thesis (Allen & Unwin, 1980), Dominant Ideologies (Unwin Hyman, 1990) and the Penguin Dictionary of Sociology (Penguin, 2006). Colin Mills is University Lecturer in Sociology and Fellow of Nuffield College, University of Oxford. His research interests are in social stratification, the sociology of employment relations and measurement issues in the social sciences. He previously held appointments at the University of Surrey and the London School of Economics. Michael White founded the Employment Studies Group at the Policy Studies Institute, University of Westminster, where he is now Emeritus Fellow. He is author of Against Unemployment (PSI, 1991) and co-author of Restructuring the Employment Relationship (OUP, 1998) and Managing to Change? - British workplaces and the future of work (Palgrave, 2004). He was awarded an OBE for services to labour market policy in 2005.

Draws on a wide range of high quality nationally representative surveys Detailed, carefully referenced, literature reviews Clearly presented tables and diagrams, links to accompanying websites The chapters are relatively self-contained and may be read separately from others.