The management of second-generation migrant workers in China

A case study of centrifugal paternalism

Bibliographic Data

ID9890657
AuthorsJingqi Zhu (0000-0003-3868-149X, University of Liverpool, corresponding author), Robyn Delbridge (0000-0001-8451-265X, Cardiff University), Rick Delbridge (Cardiff University)
Year2022
Volume75
Issue12
Pages2272-2299
Publication date2022-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHuman Relations (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0018-7267 • E-ISSN: 1741-282X
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/00187267211032948
OpenAlexW3185302362
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited55

How have organisations sought to manage tensions between the needs for flexible labour in neoliberal market economies and the benefits of a committed and motivated workforce? Through an in-depth, qualitative study of a Chinese company, we identify and theorise a novel variation of paternalism that was developed by the organisation to manage the tensions under neoliberal capitalism. We label this management regime ‘centrifugal paternalism’ since it organises employment relations along the lines of ‘adult-like’ employers and ‘child-like’ employees but involves the diminution of employee dependency over time with an ultimate impulse away from the employing organisation. We find that the emergence of centrifugal paternalism is closely related both to the socio-demographic identity of the company’s employees as China’s second-generation migrant workers and to the economic context of the organisation. Through a ‘tough love’ approach, this regime allows the firm to secure flexible labour while responding to migrant workers’ needs for personal skills development and a fruitful rural-to-urban transition. Our research responds to recent calls for reconnecting organisation studies with society and situating workplace practices within their contexts. It also underlines the enduring importance of paternalism for understanding the dynamic and evolving nature of capitalist employment relations and management regimes

Business · Capitalism · China · Context (archaeology · Economic growth · Economics · Market economy · Paternalism · Political science · Sociology · Workforce · Digital Economy and Work Transformation · Employment and Welfare Studies · Labor Movements and Unions · Law