Modified Conceptual Framework

Chapter 1 noted that this thesis aims to contribute to the understanding of organizational structures and practices that receive little attention in work-life research (Kossek & Lambert, 2005). The CAGE framework does not explicitly include workplace factors other than economic processes and activities; but, this does not mean they are not addressed. According to McMullin (2010), organizational structures and practices are outcomes themselves that reflect unequal relations. For instance, gendered workplace practices (i.e., the expectation that work is a worker’s sole or top priority) are the result of the interaction between structured gender relations, productive processes and activities, and agency. Generally speaking, such practices advantage men who are more likely to be able to demonstrate their company commitment and competence through long hours of work compared to women. The firm outcomes of interest in this thesis -- FWPs and workplace cultures -- are considered as concrete dimensions of social inequality in Figure 2.2 (far right of the figure); their distribution and structure are reflective of unequal social

relations. The purpose of their inclusion was not to challenge McMullin’s CAGE framework but rather to be clear about where the organizational structures and practices studied in this thesis fit conceptually in the framework drawn upon. Explicitly including firm processes helps consider another layer of the social world in research (Krüger & Levy, 2001).

Earlier in this chapter, FWPs were discussed in relation to workers’ alienation from the labour process. Lacking control over how to perform work activities implies that workers cannot choose when, where, and/or for how long their work is performed.

Accordingly, workers’ use of FWPs is limited (Fenwich & Tausig, 2004; Hill et al., 2008). Further, the use of FWPs is also constrained if workers’ family or personal lives are not integrated into the organization of the workplace (Lewis & Smithson, 2009; Peper et al., 2009; Ranson & Dryburgh, 2011). The following two research questions, then, are asked of the small IT firms in this study. First, how do small IT firms compare regarding the flexible workplace practices available and used by employees? Second, how do the behaviours of employees and rules established by management regarding the time and place of work compare among small IT firms?

Gender or class relations are not the only potential influence. McMullin’s (2010) framework implies that multiple levels of forces may have an effect on workplace processes including FWPs. The life course dimensions of this framework suggest that one’s substantive birth cohort, the timing of lives/life stage, and linked lives of individuals could influence a firm’s relative flexibility for employees or, at least individuals’ experiences of it. Together, these different processes and forces shape the context of a firm. As mentioned earlier, linked lives can influence the structure of

opportunities for individuals (Dannefer, 2003). The opportunity of a worker to use FWPs, for example, may be influenced by interdependent lives with employers, managers, or co- workers. This point leads me to the third research question of this thesis. How do the past employment experiences of small IT firm owners affect their firms’ offering and

facilitation of flexible workplace practices?

As mentioned earlier, this dissertation draws on Fine’s (2006) shopfloor culture concept. Workplace culture refers to the shared knowledge, beliefs, behaviour, and customs that emerge among members, and from controlling and manipulating techniques of managers in small groups (Fine, 2006; Harrington & Fine, 2006). Such techniques can result from class relations through employers’ or managers’ attempts to make workers’ behaviours as predictable as possible (see e.g., Burawoy, 1979). Gender relations were also discussed in relation to obtaining desired behaviours from workers; it was argued that ideal worker behaviours and workplace structures are often established in ways that are separate from the family or personal lives of workers. Workers’ negotiations of these expectations reflect individual agency and contribute towards a workplace culture. Accordingly, workplace culture is an outcome that can reinforce the expectations of workers that are based on the structured social relations of gender, age, race, and/or ethnicity and reproduce the relative advantages or disadvantages certain individuals and groups tend to experience. For these reasons, the structure of a workplace culture is considered as a concrete dimension of social inequality in Figure 2.2. It too can be influenced by the life course of individuals within a firm, especially those like managers who are in positions of power.

FWPs and workplace cultures are not necessarily independent outcomes. Past research on this association was discussed earlier in this chapter. This interconnection, however, is not static. The arrow at the bottom of Figure 2.2 emphasizes the passage of time. FWPs and workplace cultures connect reiteratively with individual agency, linked lives, the timing of lives/life stage, productive processes and activities (or, production), and structured social relations. The fourth research question is how do employees experience flexible workplace practices in small IT firms? These various processes and relations are presumed to influence employees’ experiences. In the next chapter, I discuss the methodology guiding this dissertation and then describe the sample used. I also present the four research questions together.

Class Relations

Age Relations

Gender Relations

Race/Ethnic

Relations

Substantive

Birth Cohort _{Productive Processes and}

Activities

Reproductive Processes and Activities Distributive Processes and

Activities Timing of Lives; Life Stage Agency Linked Lives Concrete Dimensions of Social Inequality: - The distribution of the availability and use of FWPs

- The structure of workplace cultures