Hard work in new jobs: The quality of work and life in European growth sectors

Abstract

Hard Work in New Jobs investigates hard work and new and expanding jobs in Europe. The interrelationship between the labour market and welfare regimes, quality of work and quality of life is played out at many levels: the institutional; the organizational level of the company and its customers or clients; the level of everyday life at the workplace and beyond it; and the level of workers' careers and biographies. So far, there have been limited attempts to connect these levels in analysing the interrelationship between job growth, quality of work and quality of life. The present book aims to do just that and connects analyses of the structure and meaning of 'hard work'. The book explores the configurations and factors that shape 'hard work' on the European level, the levels of European and national sectors, the levels of companies and the career trajectories and experiences of workers in catering, cleaning, construction, elderly care, and waste management.